The woman using AI to bring aid to civilians in war-torn Lebanon

Last November a ceasefire was agreed between Israel and Lebanon. Despite some skirmishes it has largely been upheld. But people on the ground say the provision of aid has not improved.

International NGO Islamic Relief told the BBC that the “conflict, destruction, and evacuation orders have fuelled ongoing displacement in Lebanon which has made it difficult to assess and address the needs of the population amid the changing situation.”

But it is not just the war that is hindering aid distribution.

Bilal Merie, a volunteer working with Hania says many of the problems they face are due to the “high demand but short supply” of aid.

He puts it down to the deep economic turmoil that has gripped the country since 2019, meaning the Lebanese government has had to rely heavily on funding from creditors and aid organisations for goods.

But even NGOs are feeling the crunch. Unicef Lebanon says that with only 20% of the funding they need, it “continues to face an enormous funding gap,” meaning the charity is unable to support families when they need it most.

In a country overrun with financial woes and by war, could this aidbot make a tangible difference?

It is the first time researcher John Bryant from the think tank Overseas Development Institute has heard of a chatbot being used in such a way in the humanitarian sector.

He says the cultural context in which it is being used is commendable. That is, with knowledge of “the channels people are using to talk to each other and meeting them in their own language”.

However he is unsure of its scalability, as what works in Lebanon cannot easily be replicated in other parts of the world.

“What tech offers a lot of the time is a standard cookie cutter approach.

“It’s the local designers, the local translators, the trusted human interlocutors and elements within that system that elevate digital tools into something useful,” he says.

The aidbot might not be able to offer the solution to all Lebanon’s problems, but to the families using it, it has made life a little easier.

Additional reporting by Ahmed Abdallah