UN agency chief praises Lebanon for support of Syrian refugees
November 08, 2012: The head of the United Nations food relief agency on Wednesday
expressed her thanks to the people and Government of Lebanon for their support of
Syrians seeking refuge from the violence affecting their country.
“We are
grateful for the generosity of the Lebanese people and their Government for keeping
an open door policy to displaced Syrians in search of safety and for facilitating
WFP’s work in Lebanon to assist Syrian refugees,” said the UN World Food Programme’s
(WFP), Ertharin Cousin.
The UN official’s comments came at the end of the
first day of a three-day trip to the Middle East – involving Lebanon and Jordan –
to see the increasing humanitarian needs of Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries.
In addition, the trip is her first official visit to the region since she assumed
her post as head of WFP in April.
Syria has been wracked by violence, with
at least 20,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President
Bashar al-Assad began some 20 months ago. The violence has spawned more than 380,000
refugees – many of them seeking safety and aid in neighbouring countries – while more
than 2.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, according to UN estimates.
WFP has launched a regional emergency operation to cover the food needs of
Syrians who have fled to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. In Lebanon, it aims to
reach more than 85,000 refugees with food vouchers in November alone.
While
in the Lebanese capital of Beirut today, Ms. Cousin held talks with the country’s
President Michel Sleiman and Prime Minister Najib Mikati on the situation and challenges
facing Lebanon and the humanitarian response from WFP and partners.
“My responsibility
is to provide a voice to the humanitarian needs of the displaced Syrians whom I met
today and to work with the international community to ensure that we continue to address
the basic needs of Syrians whether still inside Syria or in neighbouring countries,”
Ms. Cousin told a news conference in Beirut.
In the afternoon, Ms. Cousin
travelled to the Bekaa Valley, in eastern Lebanon, and visited a distribution centre
where refugees receive WFP food vouchers. Under the voucher system, often used by
the UN agency in urban settings, beneficiaries can buy their own groceries, including
fresh food, from local shops, which also helps boost the local economy.
The
WFP chief also went to a grocery shop in the town of Britel in the Baalbek area and
met Syrian families redeeming their vouchers. Visiting a Syrian family in its temporary
accommodation in Baalbek, she heard first-hand how the family members left their home
in Rural Homs – and the difference that the agency’s food vouchers have meant for
them.
“We left our home and fled with only the clothes on our backs as bombing
and shelling hit our neighbourhood nine months ago and our home was totally destroyed,”
said Abeer, a 35-year-old wife and mother of four daughters, according to a WFP news
release. “We left everything behind and are struggling to make ends meet. The food
vouchers that we receive from WFP are giving us a break and we don’t have to worry
about feeding our children.”
On Thursday, the WFP Executive Director will
visit Jordan.