Malteser International in Lebanon
On August 4, 2020, a devastating explosion flattened a large section of the Lebanese capital, Beirut ripping apart the lives and property of countless people. The blast killed more than 190 people and injured some 6,000. Hospitals sustained heavy damage, and many other health facilities were overwhelmed with the number of people in need of medical help. The disaster also plunged some 300,000 people into sudden homelessness.
Together with our long-standing partner, the Lebanese Association of the Knights of Malta (LAKM), Malteser International responded in the immediate aftermath of the explosion by providing medical care for the wounded and relief for people who had lost their homes. Months after the blast, we are still on the ground to support the recovery process, especially for the most vulnerable.
Your support is still needed to help people in Lebanon recover from the trauma of the disaster!
How your gift helped our response in Lebanon
- The explosion damaged several health facilities to the point that they were no longer operational. Three Malteser International mobile medical buses provided urgent medical care to 1,547 people in the first days following the explosion. This helped to ease the pressure on healthcare services.
- About 300,000 people were forced onto the streets as their homes were rendered uninhabitable by the eplosion. In addition to clearing the rubble and shards from homes, more than 200 volunteers from the Order of Malta helped to deliver food packages to people in need.
- A Malteser International response team carried out further assessment of needs on the ground.
Help is still needed: Our work in Beirut continues
We are rehabilitating five badly damaged health facilities and equipping them with urgently needed medicines and supplies.
In cooperation with the Lebanese Association of the Order of Malta's volunteers, we are helping to repair and renovate the homes of elderly citizens and people with disabilities, while providing them with necessary household items.
Given the rise in covid-19 infections, we are distributing hygiene kits containing disinfectants, reusable masks and soap to vulnerable groups.
In addition to medical care, patients at health facilities supported by Malteser International also receive psychosocial support and trauma counselling.
Sustainable aid through Lebanon's complex crisis
Lebanon was already in the throes of a deep economic and political crisis before the explosion in August 2020. For years, the country's economy has struggled under the weight of excessive national debt, politics of sectarianism, and the influx of refugees from neighboring countries (Lebanon currently hosts some 1.5 million Syrian refugees and 450,000 refugees from Palestine). The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the situation. Health facilities in the country are struggling to cope with rising coronavirus infections.
These developments have plunged Lebanon into the worst crisis since its civil war: mass unemployment and rising food prices mean that half of Lebanon's population now lives below the poverty line. The nearly two million refugees in the country are very vulnerable. Many have inadequate access to food and healthcare. Medical supplies in a large number of healthcare facilities have dwindled.
Malteser International's long-term commitment is to strengthen the resilience of the Lebanese people as well as to improve their overall well-being. To achieve this goal, our activities range from providing primary health care and increasing food security to the establishment of a cooperative medical network of representatives from different religious communities to benefit all people.
Since 2014, we have provided humanitarian aid in partnership with the Lebanese Association of the Order of Malta. Together, we operate several mobile health stations to reach Syrian refugees and vulnerable families in underserved regions of the country. We also provide medicines and medical equipment to health centres run by the Order of Malta in Lebanon. We are also helping to build capacities and develop structures of our healthcare partners with a view to strengthening the healthcare sector in the long term. Finally, we are also distributing relief supplies to refugees and Lebanese famlies in need to ensure their basic needs. To improve food security in the country, we are supporting organizations in the agricultural sector to maintain food production even during the crisis.
A map of our activities in Lebanon
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As a sponsoring partner, your regular donation gives real, life-changing help to people in need in our project regions. Your commitment helps us plan ahead and bring about long-lasting impact.
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Projects completed:
Project information
Partner: Lebanese Association of the Knights of Malta (LAKM)
Photo credit donation samples: Andrea Krogmann/Malteser International
