Addressing Poor Living Conditions To Improve Health In Palestinian Camps In Lebanon | Research And Policy Memo #4

Research and Policy Memo #4 | April 2010
Addressing Poor Living Conditions to Improve Health in Palestinian Camps in LebanonRima R. Habib
According to research carried out at the American University of Beirut, the living environment of Palestinian refugees residing in Bourj el Barajneh camp in Beirut lacks the basic services and infrastructure necessary to safeguard the health of community residents. Established in 1948 by the International League of Red Cross Societies, Bourj el Barajneh camp is one of the largest and oldest refugee camps in Lebanon. Housing more than 20,000 refugees, the camp is over-crowded according to humanitarian standards. Because of the poor socio-economic situation of the majority of the residents and the control imposed on entering building materials into the camps, many structures are poorly constructed and irregular. Palestinian and Lebanese residents in the camp also suffer from a lack of basic service provision, such as electricity and water. Over 1,900 people are classified as Special Hardship Cases by UNRWA – these people lack “basic medical and social facilities, live on food rations with no main breadwinner member in the household” (UNRWA, 2009). Residents of the camp are among the poorest in Lebanon and possess few other resources to improve their living situations (Tiltnes, 2005). The economic conditions in the camp are partially due to the legal restrictions placed on refugees in Lebanon.