For many in crisis-wracked Lebanon, clean water is no longer affordable

As Lebanon grapples with an unprecedented economic depression, many families can barely afford the most basic necessities. Even access to clean water is no longer something they can take for granted.

Even prior to the crisis, Lebanon’s water supply and wastewater services were already fragile. Now they are on the brink of collapse. And the cost of accessing water represents a major financial strain for vulnerable families struggling to put food on the table. This is a serious concern in a country where more than half the population now live in poverty and about the same number of people rely on bottled water as their main source of drinking water.

“My husband can’t find work, we don’t have money to buy water,” says Fatima, a 38-year-old mother of six. “What am I supposed to do?”

A survey conducted by UNICEF in April showed that one in five families in Lebanon did not have enough drinking water.

The difficulty in accessing water represents a major health risk for vulnerable communities, and particularly children. Lack of access to clean, safe water and efficient sanitation increases vulnerability to waterborne diseases and COVID-19.

Being unable to afford water is also causing significant stress. “We’ve seen the mental health of people decline alarmingly over recent months”, says Maha, a project manager with the Lebanese Organization for Studies and Training (LOST), which partners with UNICEF to provide Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) support in a refugee camp close to the border with Syria.

UNICEF, in partnership with LOST, supplies infection prevention and control (IPC) and hygiene kits to every family in the camp. In addition, UNICEF is currently also ensuring the supply of 26 litres of water per person per day.

Syrian refugee, Rima Mahmoud, a mother of six, spends much of her time helping other women in the camp cope with the dire situation,  and  ensure they are not exposed to danger or unnecessary stress. Rima says that two key areas are COVID-19 awareness and general hygiene. “Neither of these can be successfully addressed without adequate water supplies”, she adds.

“We Lebanese have lived through some terrible times here in the north. We’ve had more than our fair share of crises, but today, we can’t even afford the basics of food and water”

While Syrians are particularly hard hit, the overlapping crises have left numerous Lebanese families in a desperate situation and in need of humanitarian support.

For the tightly-knit community of Lebanese families around Tripoli’s Boubli Street, a regular supply of safe water is a pipe dream. One of the city’s oldest neighbourhoods, it has never been connected to the municipal water network. Instead, residents rely on water trucks to fill their tanks and remove waste. They did recently get new rooftop water tanks, but those are all empty. Neither the residents nor the municipality can afford to fill them.

Like Fatma, her elderly neighbour Suad says she simply doesn’t have the resources to buy the water she needs. “We Lebanese have lived through some terrible times here in the north. We’ve had more than our fair share of crises, but today, we can’t even afford the basics of food and water.”

UNICEF IN ACTION

• UNICEF has supported the Government in updating the National Water Sector Strategy, building the foundations for transparent and efficient resource management.
• It is providing supplies and repairs to avoid the collapse of the Water Establishments, which are responsible for provision of water services.
• It has completed WASH projects, providing water and wastewater services as well as jobs to local communities.
• It is ensuring continuity of water and wastewater services to more than 150,000 Syrian refugees, half of them children, in informal settlements.
• It has also provided WASH support to communities affected by the August 2020 Beirut Port explosions, that caused massive damage and destruction.