News briefing
Editing: Committee for Justice
Geneva: October 27, 2021
The Media Center of the Human Rights Council in Geneva announced that the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Olivier de Schutter, will conduct a fact-finding mission in the field of human rights to Lebanon from 1 to 12 November 2021, to examine the government’s efforts to alleviate poverty in the country.
De Schutter stressed that Lebanon is going through one of the worst economic crises in the history of the world, explaining that “according to one estimate, in just two years, multidimensional poverty has doubled from 42% to 82%, with nearly four million people facing deprivation in education, health care, public utilities, housing, property, or employment and income.”
The UN rapporteur continued, “Poverty is intertwined with the exacerbation of the monetary, debt, energy and political crises that Lebanon is facing, and I will look closely at how the government addresses its impact on people’s lives.”
This visit is the second of its kind by a UN rapporteur to Lebanon in the past decade, and represents an important step in the government’s engagement with the UN human rights system.
De Schutter is expected to visit Beirut, Tripoli and rural communities in Akkar and the Bekaa Valley, and meet with government officials at the national and local levels, individuals and communities affected by poverty, as well as meet with international organizations, activists, academics, donors and civil society organizations.
