Research Snapshot: Older Syrian refugees in Lebanon and food insecurity

Findings on food insecurity, drawn from a wider study which tracked adherence to COVID-19 preventive/ control measures among older refugees in response to underlying and emergent barriers enablers and vulnerabilities.

Over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has been consistently pervasive amongst Syrian refugees. This study, carried out in Lebanon during the COVID-19 pandemic, found that high proportions of older refugees are vulnerable to food insecurity. Refugees are resorting to more drastic coping strategies, despite receiving assistance from humanitarian aid agencies.

Results will inform future humanitarian actions to reduce the impact of long-term pandemics on older refugees by addressing: 1) food insecurity 2) coping strategies and 3) reliance on humanitarian assistance.

This snapshot focuses on the findings relevant to food insecurity. Additional findings, including on vaccine acceptance among older Syrian refugees, are available in the team’s range of outputs and articles on their project page.