Global Refugee Forum highlights: Lebanon's complex refugee dynamics

It appears that United Nations institutions do not consider Lebanon's crisis solely humanitarian but rather an economic crisis for which the government is responsible. 

The focus is on the crisis of Syrian refugees, but this does not mean neglecting assistance to the Lebanese. According to 2022 figures, around 490,000 Lebanese benefited from financial aid. 

Civil society organizations or NGOs play a role in assisting refugees and host communities. They were present at the Global Refugee Forum, whereas questions about their transparency were raised in Lebanon.

The World Bank announced in this forum that it is conducting a census of refugees in Lebanon, considering that without accurate numbers, it is not possible to direct and control aid and reduce costs.

The forum also addressed the issue of the "unregistered" or the undocumented, and there are a fair number of them in Lebanon, especially with the increase in Syrian births and the lack of these people's access to identification documents.

Maha Mamo was born to Syrian parents in Lebanon before the Syrian war. She did not obtain Syrian documents because, as she claims, mixed-religion marriages are not recognized in Syria. 

She lived in Lebanon for 30 years without official papers until she found a solution.

The repercussions of the Syrian refugee crisis in Lebanon will not "escape" the debates and political conflicts and will remain "volatile" as long as the country is internationally abandoned and its authorities are incapable of addressing the international community in a language it understands.