A ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Lebanon last November. Despite some conflicts, it is mostly supported. But people on the ground say aid delivery has not improved.
International NGO Islamic Relief told the BBC that “conflict, destruction and evacuation orders have fueled ongoing displacement in Lebanon, making it difficult to assess and address the needs of the population amid a changing situation.”
But it is not only the war that hinders the distribution of aid.
Bilal Merie, a volunteer who works with Hania, says many of the problems they face are caused by a “high demand but lack” of help.
He attributes this to the deep economic turmoil that has gripped the country since 2019, meaning the Lebanese government has had to rely heavily on financing from creditors and aid organizations for goods.
But even non-governmental organizations feel the crisis. Unicef Lebanon says that with only 20% of the funding it needs, it “continues to face a huge funding gap”, meaning the charity is unable to support families when they need it most.
In a country wracked by financial problems and war, can this aidbot make a tangible difference?
This is the first time researcher John Bryant of the think tank Overseas Development Institute has heard of a chatbot being used in such a way in the humanitarian sector.
He says that the cultural context in which it is used is for praise. That is, with knowledge of “the channels people use to talk to each other and get to know them in their own language.”
However, he is not sure about its scalability, as what works in Lebanon cannot be easily replicated in other parts of the world.
“What technology offers most of the time is a standard cookie-cutter approach.
“Local designers, local translators, reliable human interlocutors and elements within that system elevate digital tools into something useful,” he says.
Aidbot may not be able to offer a solution to all of Lebanon’s problems, but it has made life a little easier for the families who use it.
Additional reporting by Ahmed Abdallah
