The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned that the ongoing crises in Lebanon are increasingly depriving children of education and forcing many of them into work.
In a report released on Wednesday, UNICEF said that “the interconnected and severe crises in Lebanon are continuing to worsen and are leading to a growing number of children being denied education and forced to work.”
UNICEF said that 26% of families have reported that their school-aged children are not attending school due to the closure of dozens of schools in southern Lebanon since October 2022.
The report also found that 8 out of 10 families have reduced spending on healthcare, and that the number of families sending their children under the age of 18 to work has increased to 16%, up from 11% in April 2023.
UNICEF said that it has provided support to more than 1,070 public schools in Lebanon, helping over 400,000 children to enroll. The agency has also supported more than 190,000 Lebanese and Syrian refugee children in public schools, and has facilitated access to vaccination services for more than 600,000 children across Lebanon.
In addition, UNICEF has provided nutrition, early childhood development, care and support services to more than 270,000 children and caregivers, as well as other social, health, rights, and vocational services.
UNICEF called on the Lebanese government to demonstrate a clear commitment to the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and to take decisive action to support and protect all children in Lebanon, ensure that they have access to essential services, and redouble efforts to ensure that every child goes to school and remains protected from physical and psychological harm.
Lebanon is facing multiple political and economic crises, the latest of which is the vacancy of the presidency. The previous president, General Michel Aoun, left office on October 31, 2022, but the parliament has failed to elect a new president.
The vacancy of the presidency has cast a shadow over the country’s economic and other crises, causing debate about the powers of the current government, which is a caretaker government.
Lebanon is looking for solutions to its financial, economic, and monetary crises, including seeking a loan from the International Monetary Fund and floating the local currency.
Lebanon has been experiencing the worst financial and economic crisis in its history for more than four years. The crisis has led to a decrease in the purchasing power of Lebanese citizens, an increase in poverty and unemployment, and a sharp decline in the value of the national currency against the dollar.
