Governments and organisations attending an international aid conference for Lebanon on Thursday are hoping to raise US $500 million to help the war-torn country recover.
Focusing on humanitarian needs and early reconstruction, the conference in Stockholm is being attended by ministers from more than 40 countries, as well as officials from the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Red Cross.
In a speech at the conference, UN Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown said the international community must act quickly to return normalcy to the lives of the Lebanese people and praised them for their resilience in times of conflict.
“Our challenge is now two-fold: to respond to Lebanon’s immediate needs, and to get the government-led recovery off to a determined start in the weeks ahead, even as we prepare for an international conference on the country’s longer-term needs,” said Malloch Brown.
The conference is being hosted by the Swedish government and is being toted as more than a fund-raising venture.
"This conference is about solidarity with the people of Lebanon and about asserting the sovereignty of Lebanon," said Minister for Foreign Affairs Jan Eliasson, who is also the outgoing President of the UN’s General Assembly.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora made an impassioned plea for support to the international community in his opening remarks at the conference.
“Lebanon, which only seven weeks ago was full of hope and promise, has been torn to shreds by destruction, displacement, dispossession, devastation and death," said Siniora.
In reference to the aftermath of a 34-day war between Israel and the armed wing of Hezbollah, a Lebanese political party, the Lebanese government is appealing for US $75 million for temporary housing and US $30 million to repair major roads and bridges.
Lebanon has already received emergency aid of US $500 million from Saudi Arabia and US $800 million from Kuwait, while the European Union has pledged US $53.91 million.
The Lebanese government has put forward a plan for the conference, based on its ‘national early recovery process’, that includes measures to ensure that the basic needs of Lebanese are met.
This recovery process would help the return of the displaced, including temporary shelter and safety from the immediate threat of unexploded ordnances. It would help restore infrastructure, and would bring access to basic social services and income-generating activities pending full reconstruction.
While the UN’s Malloch Brown was pleased to know that humanitarian supplies were getting through the ongoing Israeli air and naval blockade on Lebanon, he called for its immediate end.
“Aid when there is a blockade, is like putting someone on life support when there is a foot on their wind pipe,” he said. “We need an immediate end to the blockade and a political solution to the underlying causes of the conflict.”
This is only a first step. The Stockholm Conference is expected to meet Lebanon’s immediate humanitarian needs and help in the initial recovery of its battered economy.
“It’s for aid, for urgent needs, for displaced and for shelters,” said Beirut-based economist Marwan Iskandar. “There is nothing fundamental that relates to reconstruction. If there is any result at all it will be the kind of immediate aid that is needed.”
A second donor conference focusing on the Arab world is expected to be hosted over the next couple of months and this is expected to provide more substantial aid for the long-term recovery of Lebanon.
“The other conference certainly is supposed to be more important because it will be on reconstruction and cover such issues as the Lebanese army and the budget deficit,” said Iskandar.
CH/ED
Focusing on humanitarian needs and early reconstruction, the conference in Stockholm is being attended by ministers from more than 40 countries, as well as officials from the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Red Cross.
In a speech at the conference, UN Deputy Secretary-General Mark Malloch Brown said the international community must act quickly to return normalcy to the lives of the Lebanese people and praised them for their resilience in times of conflict.
“Our challenge is now two-fold: to respond to Lebanon’s immediate needs, and to get the government-led recovery off to a determined start in the weeks ahead, even as we prepare for an international conference on the country’s longer-term needs,” said Malloch Brown.
The conference is being hosted by the Swedish government and is being toted as more than a fund-raising venture.
"This conference is about solidarity with the people of Lebanon and about asserting the sovereignty of Lebanon," said Minister for Foreign Affairs Jan Eliasson, who is also the outgoing President of the UN’s General Assembly.
Lebanese Prime Minister Fouad Siniora made an impassioned plea for support to the international community in his opening remarks at the conference.
“Lebanon, which only seven weeks ago was full of hope and promise, has been torn to shreds by destruction, displacement, dispossession, devastation and death," said Siniora.
In reference to the aftermath of a 34-day war between Israel and the armed wing of Hezbollah, a Lebanese political party, the Lebanese government is appealing for US $75 million for temporary housing and US $30 million to repair major roads and bridges.
Lebanon has already received emergency aid of US $500 million from Saudi Arabia and US $800 million from Kuwait, while the European Union has pledged US $53.91 million.
The Lebanese government has put forward a plan for the conference, based on its ‘national early recovery process’, that includes measures to ensure that the basic needs of Lebanese are met.
This recovery process would help the return of the displaced, including temporary shelter and safety from the immediate threat of unexploded ordnances. It would help restore infrastructure, and would bring access to basic social services and income-generating activities pending full reconstruction.
While the UN’s Malloch Brown was pleased to know that humanitarian supplies were getting through the ongoing Israeli air and naval blockade on Lebanon, he called for its immediate end.
“Aid when there is a blockade, is like putting someone on life support when there is a foot on their wind pipe,” he said. “We need an immediate end to the blockade and a political solution to the underlying causes of the conflict.”
This is only a first step. The Stockholm Conference is expected to meet Lebanon’s immediate humanitarian needs and help in the initial recovery of its battered economy.
“It’s for aid, for urgent needs, for displaced and for shelters,” said Beirut-based economist Marwan Iskandar. “There is nothing fundamental that relates to reconstruction. If there is any result at all it will be the kind of immediate aid that is needed.”
A second donor conference focusing on the Arab world is expected to be hosted over the next couple of months and this is expected to provide more substantial aid for the long-term recovery of Lebanon.
“The other conference certainly is supposed to be more important because it will be on reconstruction and cover such issues as the Lebanese army and the budget deficit,” said Iskandar.
CH/ED
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
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