UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency and its partner INTERSOS today handed-over three projects benefiting more than 240,000 residents of the Union of Municipalities of the Southern Suburbs of Beirut. Through these projects, over fifty solar-powered streetlights were installed at the old airport road, ensuring sustained lighting for the section of the road starting from the airport up to El Rasoul Al Aazam Hospital. The streetlights will ensure that the area is well lit after dark and will enhance the safety of drivers and pedestrians. Two solar-powered systems were also installed in two wells in the southern suburbs, ensuring access to clean and safe water for the residents of Hay el Sellom and Sahra Al Choueifat neighborhoods. The ceremony was attended by Mr. Mohamad Dergham, Mayor of the Union of Municipalities of the Southern Suburbs, and Mr. Ivo Freijsen, UNHCR Representative in Lebanon. ‘These three projects, like several others that were implemented by UNHCR and partners across Lebanon, provide much-needed solutions to Lebanon’s energy crisis and ensure hundreds of thousands of vulnerable Lebanese and refugees have access to essential services, such as energy and water’, said Ivo Freijsen, UNHCR Representative in Lebanon. The streetlights installed on the old airport road directly benefit over 220,000 residents of the area who can enjoy improved safety after dark. The project also supports small businesses who are now able to operate for longer hours. Furthermore, the project has improved road safety for a far bigger number of drivers and pedestrians who take the road daily, beyond those residing in the area. The two solar-powered systems installed in the water wells of Hay el Sellom and Sahra Al Choueifat include 256 solar panels for the pumps to enhance access to clean and safe domestic water for over 21,500 individuals residing in the two neighborhoods. The Mayor of the Union of Municipalities of the Southern Suburb Municipalities, Mr. Mohamad Dergham, said: ‘These projects illustrate UNHCR’s strong commitment to supporting Lebanese communities have access to basic services during the unprecedented energy crisis in Lebanon’. As part of its ongoing support to communities across Lebanon, throughout 2022, UNHCR and partners have implemented innovative solutions through over 74 community support projects. These projects have increased Lebanese and refugees’ access to sustainable energy by providing solar-powered electricity to primary healthcare centres, governmental hospitals, water establishment stations and streetlights, benefiting over 1.5 million persons in more than 84 villages across the country. In 2022, over 480,000 individuals, Lebanese and refugees, benefited from UNHCR projects in the Beirut and Mount Lebanon regions alone.
Source: National News Agency-Lebanon