Aya, Jameel, Fteim, Yasmin and Mohamad were given a camera to document their lives. They are among the 1.2 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon and recipients of EU-funded cash assistance in a country where life is getting harder by the day.
9 out of 10 refugee families in Lebanon are living in extreme poverty. They cannot afford a range of essential goods and services considered crucial for survival.
Given the prolonged multi-dimensional crisis, the limited income opportunities, and their fragile legal status, cash assistance and other forms of aid are a lifeline for refugees in Lebanon.
The EU funds the World Food Program (WFP) to assist the most vulnerable refugees with monthly cash transfers. The assistance helps recipients meet their essential needs. In July 2022 alone, WFP assisted over 37,000 Syrian households.
In addition, via its EU Trust Fund for Syria (EUTF Syria), the EU supports vulnerable people in Lebanon with monthly cash assistance.
In September 2022, around 345,000 Lebanese and over 230,000 Syrian refugees received monthly cash assistance for food and other essential needs thanks to the EUTF-funded project run by the WFP.
19-year-old Aya lives with her family in the Lebanese town of Majdal Aanjar, located in the Bekaa Valley. Originally from Damascus, she came to Lebanon in 2016. Despite serious shortcomings, cash assistance has lifted some pressure off the family.
© Adrian Hartrick, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Aya lives with her two children, aged 4 and 1.5, her husband, her brother-in-law, her sister and her parents. Up until late 2020, they were not receiving any assistance and their debts were getting out of control.
© Aya, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Fteim lives with her four children and husband in a tent on a quiet rural road in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. Life is still a struggle. The winters are cold and the summers very hot. They chose this spot because they didn’t want to live in a camp or a town.
© Adrian Hartrick, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Fteim started receiving cash assistance for food and basic needs in 2019. Despite living near a farm, they still need to purchase vegetables from mobile truck vendors. She wished they had some land to grow their own. Food prices keep on rising.
© Fteim, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Jameel, a father of three, lives with his wife and children in an informal tented settlement in Bekaa. Being unemployed, cash assistance helps him to pay off debts. He said if cash assistance were to stop, he would no longer have any source of income.
© Adrian Hartrick, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
As Jameel and his family’s costs greatly exceed their monthly cash transfer, they can only afford to buy basic food items. Vegetables are now a rarity in their diet consisting primarily of rice, bulgur, and beans.
© Jameel, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Mohamad was 11 when he fled Homs. He is the oldest of 3 siblings. He works installing TV satellites, and his father works in a grocery store. They have been receiving monthly cash assistance for food and basic needs since the summer of 2020.
© Adrian Hartrick, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
The family keeps a small vegetable garden on their balcony and raises chickens. This provides the family with a constant source of eggs and protein.
© Mohamad, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Yasmin (30) is a single mother with 2 children. She fled Damascus in 2014 and lives in the town of Majdal Aanjar. Living with her mother, two brothers, a sister-in-law, and a niece, they have difficulty making ends meet.
© Adrian Hartrick, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Yasmeen has been receiving cash assistance since 2021. It has allowed her to be less dependent on her brothers. This assistance has provided relief for Yasmin in terms of food, basic needs, and medication.
@ Yasmin, 2022 All rights reserved. Licensed to the European Union under conditions.
Story by CAMEALEON (The Cash Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning Organizational Network)
Publication date: 04/01/2023
