Lebanon Acted

Beirut after the Explosions: Our achievements over the last six months

Six months after the explosions ripped through the port of Beirut and surrounding areas, the city and its diverse communities are having a hard time getting back on their feet.

Piles of debris and twisted metal, shattered concrete and exposed shelters can still be seen throughout the many neighborhoods affected by the explosions.

ACTED, alongside Lebanese civil society actors, has been providing emergency support to the most vulnerable communities in Beirut, helping families to rebuild their homes and businesses.

ACTED engineers carrying out interior structural assessments

How has ACTED responded to the explosion?

ACTED Lebanon has been on the forefront of the emergency assistance since the very first day after the blast with the following activities:

 

2700+
dignity and baby kits distributed
200+
emergency shelter kits provided
100 truckloads of debris removed
Mapping and coordination with Beirut Municipality

300+ apartments rehabilitated

2000+
people supported with psychosocial first aid
1,300
people received mental health support

Neighbourhood profiling with Beirut Urban Labs

The Beirut Urban Lab is a collaborative and interdisciplinary research space. The Lab produces scholarship on urbanization by documenting and analyzing ongoing transformation processes in Lebanon and its region’s natural and built environments.

12 local initiatives trained to improve their response operations

Training included: financial management, external relations and technical know-how to improve their operations.

60+ small businesses supported with cash grants
Technical staff begin measurements to allow for rehabilitation work. The priority was to ensure structures were safe for those displaced to return to.

A succession of crises

The Beirut port explosions is a humanitarian tragedy that has been compounded by a succession of crises that the population has been dealing with, without any respite.

Over the past six months, the Lebanese people and other communities of refugees and migrant workers have faced the  consequences of the political crisis, unprecedented price inflation, market shortages, spiking unemployment, in addition to the Covid-19 crisis.

In an attempt to control the virus, the government introduced national mobilization measures, which inevitably impacted everyday social and economic life. These crises have pushed thousands into unemployment,  leaving many with little or no means to avoid the extreme hardship. It is estimated that 45% of the general population is now living below the poverty line.

 

Investing in Tomorrow: Our work with Lebanese Organisations

Central to ACTED’s approach in the Beirut response has been our work in longer-term resilience building and recovery. As well as working alongside and coordinating with Lebanese organisations, ACTED has also integrated partner staff into trainings on: financial management, external relations and technical know-how to improve their operations. Such capacity building is essential for ensuring civil society is left in a better position in future emergency response.

You can read more about our partner Beirut Urban Labs by clicking on the following link: https://www.beiruturbanlab.com/

 

ACTED’s response has targeted the most vulnerable communities located in the areas of:

  • Karantina
  • Gemmayze
  • Bourj Hammoud
  • Mar Mikhael
  • Jeitawi
  • Rmeil
For a full overview of all of ACTEDs achievements in responding to the Beirut explosion, please download our factsheet.
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