Lebanese residing in the country and abroad have donated more than $16 million to enable hospitals, health institutions and the Red Cross to cope with the scarcity of finances and medical supplies necessary to cope with the COVID-19 outbreak.

In light of the government failure to support the medical body in the country, media outlets and several political parties launched donation campaigns to fill the shortage.

The country’s financial crisis has caused a dollar shortage that, since September, has restricted the ability of medical supply importers to import vital medical supplies, including masks, gloves, and other protective gear, as well as ventilators and spare parts.

During a three-day campaign, MTV channel collected more than LL25 billion (more than $16 million), while the Free Patriotic Movement gathered $250,000, in addition to other donations pledged directly from Lebanese and non-Lebanese to the National Fund fighting the coronavirus.

Last week, Prime Minister Hassan Diab said: “Once again, the Lebanese people proved that they are able to confront challenges, by coming together and uniting, and by raising donations for the fight against the coronavirus, proving that they are a nation that deserves Lebanon.”

The donations came a day before Human Rights Watch released a statement saying Lebanon’s financial crisis has resulted in a scarcity of medical supplies needed to tackle the outbreak.

“Hospital staff and nurses have raised concerns about the failure of the government and hospitals to adequately staff hospitals and protect staff from infection. The Lebanese government is obligated to ensure everyone’s right to health, including access to essential medical care and treatment of disease,” it said.

“The COVID-19 outbreak has placed additional strain on a health care sector already in crisis,” said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. “The Lebanese government has taken swift and broad measures that bought it time, but its ability to manage the outbreak will depend on how it uses this time to secure necessary supplies and provide health care workers with the resources they need.”

HRW quoted a source at the public Rafik Hariri University Hospital (RHUH) in Beirut, the leading COVID-19 testing and treatment center in the country, as saying that the government has paid only 40 percent of the dues it owes the hospital from 2019 and has made no payments for 2020. Public hospitals in Halba and Akkar also said they have not received all their payments from the government.