Interview results with municipalities

This study aimed to document the range of preparedness/reactivity of municipalities as COVID-19 swept through Lebanon.
A qualitative case study was implemented to explore municipal response to control the epidemic, using in-depth semi-structured interviews with twenty-seven stakeholders from nine municipalities across all governorates in Lebanon.
Our results showed that the response to the pandemic differed significantly in volume and nature among different municipalities across regions, with rural areas clearly disadvantaged in terms of adequacy and completeness of response. Barriers consistently mentioned by most municipalities included economic collapse and poverty, shortage in resources, lack of support from the central government, stigma, lack of awareness, underreporting, flaws in the MOPH surveillance system, impeded accessibility to healthcare services, limited number, and weak role of municipal police, increased mental illnesses, and political patronage, favoritism, and interference. On the other hand, increased donations, community engagement, social support and empathy, sufficient human resources, the effective role of healthcare systems, and good governance were identified as key facilitators.
Thus, It is crucial meanwhile that the central government strengthens the administrative and financial resources of municipalities in preparing and rapidly deploying the expected optimal response.

本研究旨在记录在新冠病毒席卷黎巴嫩期间，各市政府在应对准备和反应方面的范围。通过实施定性案例研究，探讨了各市政府在控制疫情方面的应对措施，采用了对来自黎巴嫩所有省份九个市的二十七位利益相关者的深度半结构化访谈。研究结果揭示，各市政府在应对疫情方面的反应在数量和性质上存在显著差异，农村地区在应对措施的充分性和完整性方面明显处于不利地位。大多数市政府普遍提到的障碍包括经济崩溃和贫困、资源短缺、中央政府支持不足、污名化、缺乏意识、报告不足、公共卫生部监控系统的缺陷、医疗服务可及性受限、市政警察数量有限且作用薄弱、精神疾病增加以及政治庇护、偏袒和干预。另一方面，增加的捐款、社区参与、社会支持和同理心、充足的人力资源、医疗系统的有效作用以及良好的治理被识别为关键促进因素。因此，在当前形势下，中央政府加强市政府在准备和迅速部署预期最佳应对措施方面的行政和财务资源显得尤为关键。