WFP leaves no one behind in Lebanon
As schools were suspended in Lebanon a few months ago to curb the coronavirus amidst a challenging economy, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) school feeding programme continued offsite!
When schools across the world scrambled to cope with an unprecedented situation taking lessons and even school activities online, WFP also had to adjust its school feeding programmes to the changing situation. In Lebanon, WFP distributed a two-month food box to 13,000 families whose children attended public schools across the country.
Hanan tells us how WFP helped her family through the worst economic crisis Lebanon has ever seen and the compounding effects of COVID-19 and related lockdown measures.
Hanan opens up the large cotton bag and the scent of thyme fills the air. This is a scent that would take the majority of Lebanese back to their childhood; homemade breakfast, family and simply…home!
In this house, however, the smell of thyme carries a different meaning. Hanan collects and picks the culinary herb herself and sells it to a local tradesman for a modest amount per kg — barely enough to cover her family’s needs.
The mother of six lives with her family in the farthest district in the North of Lebanon, Akkar. Like many in that area, Hanan and her family were struggling to make ends meet as rural and marginalized Akkar offered few opportunities. Lockdown measures following the spread of the coronavirus and the ongoing economic crisis only made things worse for the family.
“My husband had a hip injury a couple of months ago and our living conditions have deteriorated quickly since then,” says Hanan. “My son is in the army, but his paycheck is barely sufficient to support him alone.”
This family lives in a one-story home next to a stone factory. They recently moved mold made their old house unlivable.
Her husband’s injury forced Hanan to become the family’s bread-winner. Her goal, like any mother’s, is to make enough to support herself, her husband and her children. She also works to ensure that her children are in school to get the education she and her husband never received.
“For some time now, I have been growing, collecting and picking thyme and other herbs to support my family with what little I can,” she explains.
Hanan’s children attend a public school in the northern district of Akkar where the WFP’s school snack programme had been running prior to the closure of schools due to the coronavirus. After that, Hanan’s family received WFP food packages to cover their needs for two months — July and August.
Thanks to funds from Italy, Canada and Ireland, WFP was able to help the most vulnerable school children and their families meet their food needs while preserving the linkages between them and their schools.
“We are grateful for the food parcel that is being distributed in our children’s school. Without this support, we would not be able to have proper food for a whole month,” Hanan explains as she takes out bags of pasta, rice and sugar from her kitchen cabinet. These are some of the essential food items contained in the WFP food box along with salt, oil and lentils.
WFP Lebanon has been distributing locally-produced snacks to children attending public schools since 2016 and, together with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, reached 32,000 Lebanese and Syrian students enrolled in 56 public schools. WFP also rehabilitated six school kitchens to provide fresh meals to an additional 5,000 children attending public schools.
Despite all that is happening, Hanan still wears a big smile on her face. This family’s morale has not been brought down by the devastating situation they live in.
“The tradesman who buys my herbs says they are the best and the cleanest in the country,” she says proudly as she recollects words of praise during these difficult times.
