European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks with EU Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib on the day of the meeting of the college of European Commissioners in Brussels, Belgium April 22, 2026. (Credit: Omar Havana/Reuters)
BEIRUT — Belgian Commissioner for Crisis Preparedness and Management at the European Parliament, Hadja Lahbib, who is also responsible for Equality, Inclusion, and Minority Rights, will be on an official visit to Lebanon on May 8 and 9. May 9 marks Europe Day.
The commissioner will accompany humanitarian aid scheduled to arrive in Lebanon at noon on Saturday. She will hold a press conference at Beirut Rafik Hariri International Airport before her departure.
The European Union (EU) and the Lebanese Ministry of Social Affairs announced at the end of April a new EU funding allocation for Lebanon amounting to 45 million euros, against the backdrop of the ongoing war between Hezbollah and Israel, which has displaced more than one million people since March 2. The announcement was made at the Grand Serail in the presence of Social Affairs Minister Hanine Sayed, Finance Minister Yassin Jaber, and EU Ambassador Sandra De Waele.
This EU budget, in the form of a grant, includes 40 million euros for the AMAN program — a national cash assistance mechanism for families in need in Lebanon—covering five months of payments for 90,000 of the most vulnerable Lebanese families, out of the current 150,000 eligible families. "An additional amount of 5 million euros will support institutional reforms at the ministry of social affairs, including updating the beneficiary database to ensure that aid reaches those most in need in the most effective way possible," according to an EU statement.
As part of her duties, Lahbib works to develop a more robust and proactive approach to crisis management and civil preparedness in Europe, both within European borders and globally. In this capacity, she is responsible for developing and implementing an EU strategy to better anticipate and prevent crises, and to prepare for them both within and outside of Europe.
Lahbib is also responsible for overseeing the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority, strengthening the EU's emergency humanitarian response tools, enhancing the international cooperation dimension of civil protection and disaster risk management, and increasing efforts in humanitarian diplomacy on the global stage to promote respect for international humanitarian law and its principles.
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