Lebanon: a third of children sleep hungry, according to Unicef

Two children here in Tripoli, Lebanon on June 21, 2021. REUTERS - EMILIE MADI

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Children bear the brunt of one of the world's worst socio-economic and financial crises since 1850, which has hit Lebanon for more than a year and a half, according to a report by the United Nations Children's Fund published this Thursday July 1.

Unicef ​​adds that the crisis affects all aspects of children's lives in Cedar Country.

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With our correspondent in Beirut,

Paul Khalifeh

The

report

by Unicef says that "

over 30% of Lebanese children slept hungry these last thirty days, because they were not given enough food

 ."

The survey carried out by the UN agency reveals a frightening reality in a country where extreme poverty has tripled in less than a year, rising to nearly a quarter of the population, estimated at six and a half million inhabitants, including one million Syrian refugees.

► 

To read also:

Crisis in Lebanon: more and more inhabitants are now struggling to eat

A worsening of the situation

Commenting on the conclusions of the investigation, the representative of Unicef ​​in Lebanon Yukie Mokuo affirmed that the number of families forced to take measures for a negative adaptation to the crisis continues to increase.

Among these measures: the elimination of a certain number of meals, the deschooling of children to put them to work, often in dangerous conditions, the sale of goods, and, finally, the early marriage of underage girls.

According to Unicef, 77% of households do not have enough food or money to buy it.

This percentage rises to 99% among Syrian families.

More than half of families are forced to buy food by accumulating unpaid bills or by borrowing.

In a report published on June 1, the World Bank called the situation in Lebanon one of the worst crises in history since the mid-19th century.

► 

To read also:

Crisis in Lebanon: anger explodes on the roadblocks of the capital

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• Lebanon

• Poverty

• Rights of the child