WASH and Education services for the most vulnerable children and their families in Akkar (Halba  Amayer including Wadi Khaled) The proposed action will address barriers to access Education and Water Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) for the most vulnerable children (host communities and refugees) and public schools in Halba and Amayer in Akkar, Lebanon. Halba and Amayer (including Wadi Khaled) are among the most impoverished areas in Akkar. Due to their critical locations bordering Syria, many refugees have sought refuge there. The majority of the population lives under the poverty line or is extremely poor, with very limited employment opportunities. Under this action, World Vision International in Lebanon (WVL) and its local sub-partner Hadatha, will provide the most vulnerable children and their families with several services including education retention support, cash for education and menstrual hygiene promotion in schools. The planned activities address emergent education, hygiene and sanitation barriers to ensure that children are retained in education and are provided with access to appropriate hygiene practices. As such, the project responds directly to Allocation Strategic Pillar 1 under the 2022 First Reserve Allocation, leveraging on WVL and Hadatha’s existing presence within Akkar. Planned activities have been developed in close coordination with the WASH and Education sectors. The proposed activities will directly benefit a total of 800 vulnerable children (424 Girls, 376 boys) including 47 children with disabilities (CWDs) with retention programs (3% of total target). This will address the gaps in supporting schools in the targeted areas with the highest number of dropouts/highest number of learners at risk of dropping out. WVL has been working closely with the education sector to and has identified 12 preliminary schools in Halba and Amayer (including Wadi Khaled). The selection will be among those schools based on recommendations from the sector and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE) after the beginning of the scholastic year. Parents are finding it increasingly difficult to send or keep their children in school due to a steep rise in tuition rates and high transportation cost. As such, WVL and Hadatha will provide 760 students with cash for education. WVL has 5 years of experience in implementing cash for education under UNICEF whereby all data collection, assessment tools and identification of beneficiaries and beneficiary mobilization was developed by WVL, and in turn UNICEF conducted the cash transfers to beneficiaries. Moreover, WVL is WFP’s largest implementing partner in the Bekaa and Akkar under in-kind assistance with a case load of more than 27,000 households (HHs) per month. To increase access to appropriate hygiene, this action will also target the same vulnerable students (including others that may be referred) aged between 12 and 18 years old with awareness messaging on proper menstrual hygiene behaviors and distribute 400 menstrual hygiene pads to female students. Under education, the selection criteria for retention programs will be children already enrolled in public schools who are falling behind in their academic performance/are at risk of drop out. WVL will identify and select the schools in the most vulnerable areas of intervention, and provide students with cash for education to both prevent/address drop-outs and support retention (this is to avoid any overlap/duplication with UNICEF). Under WASH, the same beneficiaries receiving support through the education program will also receive menstrual hygiene pads and awareness sessions. WVL and Hadatha will closely coordinate with local stakeholders, actors, municipalities and other actors working in Halba and Amayer to avoid any duplication or overlap and to achieve complementarity in intervention. This includes WASH and Education sectors including Relief International and UNICEF.