QRCS, QFFD to provide medical, food aid for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon
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QRCS, QFFD to provide medical, food aid for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon

5/17/2020

Qatar Red Crescent Society (QRCS) and Qatar Fund for Development (QFFD) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to co-launch an immediate response to Coronavirus in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. This project is part of Qatar’s ongoing support to many friendly countries of the world. It is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2 and 3. The joint project seeks to reduce the spread of Coronavirus at the camps, as well as to mitigate the socioeconomic impact of nationwide mitigation measures on vulnerable Palestinian families. The total estimation of direct beneficiaries is 139,400 individuals, mostly children, including 8,430 individuals with disability. Twelve refugee camps are targeted, six in the South, three in Beirut, two in the North, and one in Al-Bekaa. As for the detailed components of the project, 10 hospitals and health centers would receive personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect at least 400 health care providers while dealing with cases, five ambulance vehicles would be provided to transfer an average of 300 cases per month from camps to hospitals, and one quarantine hospital would be equipped and prepared to serve camp inhabitants infected with COVID-19. Also, 1,000 families would receive hygiene promotion kits for prevention of infection, and 27,800 families would receive food parcels to meet their needs during the lockdown period. The project will be co-implemented by QRCS’s representation mission in Lebanon, the Lebanese Red Cross (LRC), and Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) in Lebanon. They will work together on selecting lists of beneficiaries; identifying the target health facilities; procuring and storing the medical, food, and nonfood items; and distributing the aid through their field personnel. There was developed a scheme to ensure data update and delivery of medical supplies, food aid, and hygiene kits to the target camps as soon as possible. A rapid assessment will be done to identify the exact needs of each health facility. At the community level, priority will be given to the poor families with elderly persons, families headed by females, and families having members with chronic diseases or disabilities. For maximum safety of personnel and beneficiaries, the distribution of health items, food parcels, and hygiene kits will be arranged so that crowding and gathering is avoided all the time. Among the outcomes of the project are to achieve food security for the vulnerable families in a manner that preserves their dignity, help them during the period of market lockdown, and provide them with much-needed hygiene items to prevent infection.