Pilot program to boost
income of 1,500 households

Launched by MoSA, RMF, and World Bank

The Ministry of Social Affairs (MoSA), René Moawad Foundation (RMF), and the World Bank have launched the Productive Economic Inclusion in Lebanon (PEIL) pilot program to improve the livelihoods of 1,500 low-income Lebanese households already benefiting from the Emergency Social Safety Net Program (ESSNP).

“Funded by a $2.7 million grant from the Japan Social Development Fund, the PEIL program complements the ESSNP by providing a package of services to beneficiaries aimed at enhancing their household income, welfare, and resilience,” the World Bank said in a statement.

The PEIL program, which will be implemented by RMF over 12-18 months, will provide a package of support services to one working-age member of 1,500 current ESSNP beneficiary households. The support package will include an asset transfer such as small agriculture equipment, cooking appliances, sewing/embroidery machines, paint brushes or other tools. It will also provide training and business development support, coaching and mentoring, financial literacy training, and incentives to improve saving behaviors.

The program is one of the core pillars of the recently launched National Social Protection Strategy and will complement ongoing government efforts across other pillars of this strategy, according to the World Bank. It said: “This PEIL pilot constitutes an entry point for a wider engagement on the economic empowerment of social assistance beneficiaries to help them transition from government cash transfers to sustainable livelihoods.”