Lebanon

Lebanon has been at the forefront of one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time. According to government and independent sources, up to 1.5 million Syrian refugees are currently hosted in Lebanon, equivalent to a quarter of the Lebanese population. With the highest per capita concentration of refugees in the world, Lebanon’s social stability in many municipalities is fragile as large numbers of people increase pressure on already stretched services, infrastructure and jobs.
The protection risks and vulnerabilities of the refugee population continue to increase, and their ability to work and make longer-term plans remains highly restricted.  PROSPECT’s vision will be attained through working on the interlinked pillars of PROSPECTS:

DECENT WORK • Lebanon faces long-standing jobs challenges and the Syrian refugee crisis has had a significant impact on the Lebanese labor market. Job creation has been concentrated in low-productivity, low-skilled activities. A large reservoir of untapped human resources coupled with limited private sector job creation has led to high and long-term unemployment and pushed a growing number of workers to either migrate abroad or engage in subsistence-level activities in the informal economy.

EDUCATION • Refugees can officially access public school systems, regardless of their legal status, however non-attendance remains high, and quality of education for refugees remains low.

PROTECTION & INCLUSION • Lack of registration of Syrian refugees and availability of documentation allowing them to legally reside in Lebanon is the greatest obstacle to their protection.

The current unstable situation in Lebanon is impacting all of Lebanon, but in particular the vulnerable Lebanese and the refugees. The economic situation is deteriorating drastically, which is impacting the population but also Lebanon’s ability to host 1.5 million refugees.

PROSPECTS aims to reduce the multidimensional vulnerabilities in the country and increase social stability for refugee and host communities through a comprehensive and integrated strategy for improved resilience and self-reliance.

Shaza Al Jondi
Chief Technical Advisor for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq
jondi@ilo.org
 Marwa Boustani
National Project Coordinator
boustani@ilo.org

Rayann Koudaih
Enterprise Development Officer
koudaih@ilo.org