黄色视频

Skip to main content
Hello,

Lebanon Children Hit Hard by Price Hikes and Rising Insecurity

FAIRFIELD, Conn. (March 19, 2021) 鈥斅As the economic situation in Lebanon continues to deteriorate, children and their families are feeling the effects first-hand. The purchasing power of the local currency has fallen to a record low, resulting in a soaring inflation and dwindling wages, and leaving vulnerable families in a daily battle to survive,[i] warns Save the Children.聽聽

In addition to that, increasing social unrest and lack of safety in streets across Lebanon are having a deep impact on children鈥檚 access to services such as education and healthcare.

Mother of five Majida,* from Lebanon, has two children with disability. She said:聽聽

鈥淢y husband has been unemployed for a year. I owe the food shop 5 million pounds [approx. $360 USD].聽The owner told me I am not allowed to buy on credit anymore, not even water or bread.聽We need four bags of bread and two gallons of water a day. They cost 50,000 pounds which we don鈥檛 have.聽聽

鈥淢y children are not eating enough鈥攖hey go to bed hungry. They haven鈥檛 had chicken or meat in months.聽My two-year-old daughter cries聽every day, she wants milk. I haven鈥檛 been able to buy her milk in months.

鈥淭hey are killing us slowly and painfully. We are out of food, out of medicine, out of education. I am not worried about myself. I am terrified of what will happen to my children.鈥

Fadia*, a Lebanese single mother of five living in Beirut, said:

鈥淚 used to work as a cleaner at a local gym, but I鈥檝e been unemployed for seven months, since the Beirut explosion. Now I can鈥檛 afford rent. The only products I can afford at the supermarket are the subsidized items, but barely.

鈥淢y children are deprived more than ever of their human rights. I鈥檓 near broke but all that matters to me is my children鈥檚 health, they are suffering mentally. My 12-year-old son can鈥檛 attend online schooling anymore because he鈥檚 not able to understand [the lessons] and we only have one mobile phone in the house.鈥

Save the Children鈥檚 Country Director in Lebanon, Jennifer Moorehead, said:聽聽

鈥淪ince the start of the month, we have been receiving over 10,000 requests for assistance each week. This is a 60 percent increase compared to the previous two months. People are telling us they can鈥檛 afford baby milk; they cannot afford more than one meal a day.聽

鈥淲hat we are witnessing in Lebanon is a complex humanitarian crisis getting worse by the day. People don't know what the value of the money they earn in the morning will be by the evening. Food is less and less affordable, and should the plans to lift subsidies go ahead, we expect that children and their families suffer more if urgent support is not provided.聽

鈥淭he rapid economic decline will have direct consequences on children鈥檚 daily lives. Their access to basic rights and services is shrinking. With schools closing, COVID-19 , and the social crisis growing, children鈥檚 physical and mental safety is on the line. The international community urgently should pay attention to what is happening in this country. Lebanon is no longer a middle-class country that can rely on itself. Time is running out for children here.鈥澛

[i] The Lebanese pound has drastically fallen to hit 15,000 for a USD dollar; ten times the rate from before October 2019.

*Name has been changed

Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. Since our founding more than 100 years ago, we've been advocating for the rights of children worldwide. In the United States and around the world, we give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. We do whatever it takes for children 鈥 every day and in times of crisis 鈥 transforming the future we share. Our results, financial statements and charity ratings reaffirm that 黄色视频is a charity you can trust. Follow us on , , and .