Hassan Zuaiter was facing difficulties in arranging food for his family due to the economic crisis that Lebanon is suffering from when the restrictions imposed to fight Corona deprived him of his meager income, which he was earning from his work as a driver for a minibus.

Now Zaiter is trapped in his home in Beirut, accumulating debts for the local grocery store to provide rice and lentils for his four children.

"There are so many things that we no longer go home now, meat, milk and fruit. Many like me in the neighborhood and everyone is in debt. Everyone is in a difficult situation and nobody is working," said Zuaiter, 39.

In the past, Zuaiter had enough to support his parents. And now he is afraid of the future. "I fear for my family now more hunger than corona," he says.

A severe economic crisis had robbed the poor in Lebanon of ways to adapt to the additional difficulties. Two weeks after the decisions to restrict movement in Lebanon, there are growing signs of despair.

A taxi driver set fire to his car when he was fined for breaking the rules. A homeless hairdresser offered to sell his kidney. Protests erupted in the northern city of Tripoli and in the Bekaa Valley, due to the increasing difficulties.

Six months before the virus spread, Lebanon's long-growing economic problems reached a climax, with financial flows from abroad slowing, and the streets witnessed protests against the ruling elite.

The Lebanese currency tumbled and unemployment and inflation rose.

Lebanon’s highly indebted country, which defaulted on its March obligations, was in a difficult position to help the poor.

"People are really desperate," said Maya Tiro, chief executive of FoodBless, which co-founded the organization to deliver food to people in need. From 50 to 100 calls a day, we now receive thousands of calls.

In the past two weeks, the organization has doubled its weekly distributions, reaching 200 packages, each with enough lentils, rice, oil, sugar and other basic commodities, to prepare 150 meals.

Accelerated poverty

"Many people before that were ashamed of saying that they were poor or in need of food assistance. But after the Koruna, due to the feeling of a lot of helplessness, no one was ashamed anymore," Maya said.

"A school accustomed to teaching the French language called us. She said she had never imagined that she would ask for food assistance."

"Donations are rare because so many people have started their own initiatives," she added.

Lebanon recorded 479 cases of coronavirus and 12 deaths as of Wednesday. It has a population of about six million, including one million Syrian refugees.

Before the virus spread, the World Bank expected 40 percent of people in Lebanon to become poor by the end of 2020, and Lebanese Economy Minister Raoul Neama believes that this estimate is out of date.

"The Corona virus will accelerate this trend and the poverty rate in Lebanon may reach a peak higher than 40 percent before it decreases," Naama told Reuters.

"I am worried and unfortunately our possibilities are very limited," he said, adding that many were barely managing their daily needs but now they have lost their daily income.

The government will provide the poorest 400,000 Lebanese pounds, or about $ 150, in exchange rates on the black market.

The government is also developing a $ 450 million program with the World Bank to support the poor. The program was to be implemented in September, but Naama said he needed to accelerate it, stressing the need to move more quickly.