Projects

Sanitation, water and a future in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Al Rafeed, in the Central region of the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

In collaboration with

Acción contra el hambre

Until 31st July 2019

We help Syrian children and host communities in Lebanon achieve water and sanitation in schools and respond appropriately to future pressures.

Objectives

  • Improve access to water and sanitation services at Al Rafeed Intermediate School in Al Rafeed.
  • Provide access to water, sanitation and environmental health to Lebanese host communities for Syrian refugees.

Beneficiaries

786 direct
37 teachers, 739 students and 10 workers). 25 of the teachers are women.

6.500 indirect
5000 Lebanese and 1500 Syrians.

On the ground

The migratory pressure of Syrian refugees in the Bekaa Valley significantly affects schools that have already suffered from water and sanitation deficiencies since before the crisis.

According to UNHCR, there are currently one million Syrian refugees in Lebanon, and an estimated half million remain in the country without a certain status. This is the second largest population of Syrian refugees in the region and the largest per capita refugee population in the world.

On the 31st March 2018, according to the latest figures from UNHCR, there were 991,165 Syrian refugees registered in Lebanon, among them 357,592 in the Bekaa Valley (28,7% males < 18, 26,4% girls < 18, 16,9% men and 26,6% women). In spite of the efforts to move towards a more stabilization-oriented response, basic humanitarian needs remain extraordinary.

The situation in Lebanon, even before the Syrian crisis, was already precarious and deficient in terms of water quantity. The fact that many wells are contaminated and most of the infrastructure needs important renovation works is now added to this previous situation.

Efforts to improve this situation by reducing the losses of the system in order to meet the demands of the Lebanese population more efficiently have been eclipsed by an increase of almost 30% of the total population due to the crisis. Nowadays only 36% of this population, regardless of their nationality, uses safely managed drinking water services.

Combined with the lack of immediate assistance, this huge influx of refugees has caused a significant deterioration in the living conditions and social cohesion.

This migratory pressure especially affects schools, which have been suffering water and sanitation shortages since before the crisis.

In detail

  • Reconstruction of the connections to the water system.
  • Reconstruction of latrines for students and latrines for teachers.
  • Construction of handwashing points with adequate drainage close to each latrine.
  • Creation and Support of a Water and Sanitation Committee in the school..
  • Hygiene promotion activities on the risks related to an incorrect behavior in matters relatedto Water and Sanitation.