Housing, land and property issues of Syrian refugees in Lebanon from Homs City

In 2018, the Lebanon Crisis Response Plan (LCRP) estimated the number of Syrian refugees in Lebanon to be 1.5 million (Government of Lebanon and the United Nations, 2018). Successive studies have decried the poor living conditions of this vulnerable population (UNHCR, UNICEF and WFP, 2013; 2015). Seven years into the crisis, Syrian refugee conditions have worsened. Those who had brought along assets (such as jewellery) have sold them in their first years after arrival and those with savings have exhausted them. Despite the large presence of and remarkable efforts by local and international organizations to provide relief and support, most of these refugees have only managed to sustain their livelihoods by  joining into the scores of vulnerable populations living in Lebanon, including Palestinian, Iraqi and other refugees; migrant workers; and impoverished Lebanese individuals and communities (Martin, 2015). As unemployment soars and the economic crisis peaks in Lebanon, refugee relief has dwindled. Thus, these vulnerable groups face serious impediments to improving their livelihoods, amid a severely deficient system of public healthcare, education and housing. Among these vulnerable groups, Syrian refugees encounter the additional challenge of the national regulatory framework that governs their presence and work in Lebanon, becoming tighter since 2015, particularly in relation to refugees’ ability to maintain a legal stay in the country. The lack of legal status in turn exposes them to exploitation, especially in the context of rising tensions with host communities.