Winter Preparations: a visit to a distribution of winter items in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley
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OCTOBER DEVELOPMENTS
Winter preparations
Preparations are in full swing to protect the most vulnerable families from a possible repeat of last year's winter storms. At a time when the vulnerabilities of Syrian refugees have increased by 100 per cent in some areas, aid agencies estimate that 195,000 Syrian families (975,000 people) will suffer from winter and will need assistance to keep warm and dry. Vulnerable Lebanese families in elevated areas will also be affected and assisted by the agencies.
UNHCR has doubled the number of people receiving cash grants for winter in Lebanon this year because of this increased vulnerability among the refugee population. Over 151,000 families (750,000 people) will receive financial assistance for four months starting in November. This will allow refugees to stagger purchases such as fuel for heating.
Among these, 75,000 Syrian families living above 500 meters will receive $147 per month, while 76,000 families below 500 meters will receive $100 per month.
Another 10,000 families in remote areas such as Arsal – where cash programmes cannot be administered due to a lack of ATM systems – will receive $100 fuel vouchers per month. Assistance during the four winter months will also be provided to vulnerable Lebanese families identified by the Ministry of Social Affairs under the National Poverty Targeting Plan.
UNICEF, IOM and partners are providing cash for warm clothing and other winter needs to vulnerable Lebanese people and Lebanese who have returned from Syria.
UNRWA is providing cash support to Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, including those who have fled Syria.
Agencies are also distributing aid to 65,000 families (325,000 vulnerable Lebanese and Syrians), such as stoves, heavy blankets, winter clothes, and fuel for schools to help them survive winter, also ensuring shelters are weatherproof and insulated and that classrooms in elevated areas are warm by providing fuel in schools.
Weather proofing kits including plastic sheeting, plywood and timber to reinforce weak small-scale shelters will be given out for 27,000 families, protecting 135,000 people from the elements.
In addition, insulation kits for 15,000 families (about 75,000 people) will be introduced this year for refugees living in larger spaces like unfinished buildings where it is hard to conserve heat, especially for those in very exposed parts of the country like the Bekaa Valley. The kits include timber and plywood construction materials rolls of compressed insulating foam, stretched into wooden frames and installed inside rooms and shelters to improve heat retention. These materials are more durable than plastic sheeting, and will also help keep shelters cool in summer. Floor raising kits and extinguishers will also be provided to mitigate flood and fire risks – a recurrent problem in informal settlements last winter. Site improvements will continue by putting gravel on high traffic pathways and installing drains in flood prone settlements.
A distribution of blankets in the Bekaa for Syrian refugee families who did not receive winter assistance last year started on 30 September and continued in October. Over 8,000 refugees have benefited from this distribution.
The distribution of winter cards started in October with 2,718 families (13,590 individuals) already assisted in the Bekaa, 10,399 families (51,995 individuals) in Northern Lebanon, 4,094 families (20,470 individuals) in Southern Lebanon and 7,848 families (39,240 refugees) in Mount Lebanon.
The distribution of winter assistance to Syrian refugees residing in Arsal started on October 6. Refugee families residing in Arsal will receive $100 worth of fuel vouchers per month in November and December. A total of 981 families (4,454 individuals) residing in Arsal have so far benefited from this distribution.
Dar Al Fatwa (DAF) distributed blankets to around 633 families (over 3,000 individuals) in Arsal. The distribution of winter shelter materials also started in October in Arsal, benefiting 1,064 families (4,446 individuals) so far. More distributions are underway.