BEIRUT, 17 May 2021 - In the wake of the Beirut port blast, the European Union (EU) provided EUR 5 million in humanitarian support to 5 organisations to address the emergency needs of more than 13,000 affected people between October 2020 and April 2021.
After first providing disaster relief, the EU was committed to meet the emergency needs of people directly impacted by the explosions. It was important to support capable humanitarian organisations on the ground and address the inhabitants’ most urgent needs: shelter, psychological help or cash for food and other essentials.
Over 7 months, an EU-supported consortium consisting of the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) ACTED, Arcenciel, Lebrelief, Concern Worldwide and Intersos provided shelter rehabilitation for people’s homes, psychological support as well as emergency assistance to small and medium businesses.
The NGO consortium did all the needed repairs after the explosion: doors, windows, tiles and even the bathroom. We really appreciated their work. We did not want to leave our house, all our memories are in it. The wooden door flew across the room, it was chaos, glass and furniture pieces everywhere. We could not have done the repairs ourselves; we did not have the energy or the money.