From health emergency preparedness to response action: a long journey in Lebanon

Emergency preparedness is a critical pillar of the International Health Regulations (IHR), a legally binding instrument underlying the global health security regime that came into effect in 2005. Lebanon, a small country of 10 452 km2 bordering the eastern Mediterranean, ratified the IHR in 2007 after the devasting effects of a sudden military conflict in 2006 that severely impacted the recovering health system. Moreover, the Lebanese health system infrastructure was only just recovering from 15 years of civil war that ended in 1990. Since 2005, the country has also faced a complex refugee crisis potentiating the risk of disease outbreaks since 2011, in addition to a severe financial crisis that has degenerated into social unrest since October 2019, and more recently the COVID-19 pandemic since February 2020.