Historical Snapshot

SHEILD “Social, Humanitarian, Economical Intervention for Local Development” began as an initiative of activists in the humanitarian and recovery field, and was formed and established in 2010 by Lebanese members.

The organisation started operating in Lebanon during the last week of the 2006 war, when communities were facing the combined effects of conflict and the loss of basic services. The earliest work concentrated in South Lebanon, where needs were greatest and public services were weakest.

From those beginnings the organisation developed into a Lebanese national non-governmental association legally registered with the Lebanese Ministry of Interior and Municipalities, working across Beirut, Tyre, Tebnin, Halba, Damascus and South Lebanon.

SHEILD grew from a small collective of Lebanese activists working in the humanitarian and recovery field into a registered national organisation dedicated to social justice. Formed and established in 2010, the association began operating during the final week of the 2006 war, when communities faced the combined effects of armed conflict, the collapse of basic services, and the displacement of families. Its earliest interventions concentrated in South Lebanon, including the area around Tyre, where local populations needed emergency assistance, shelter, and support for livelihoods. This origin in emergency response shaped the organisation's identity: a locally rooted, non-governmental body that works alongside communities rather than on their behalf, with a stated commitment to neutrality, impartiality, and independence in how it acts.

Over the years, SHEILD's mandate broadened from emergency relief to longer-term development, spanning social, economical, and humanitarian dimensions of life in Lebanon. Its sectors now include emergency response to wars, armed conflicts, and natural disasters; work on prisons and the judiciary, advancing gender equality, and protecting vulnerable and marginalised populations such as women and children; education, training, and capacity building; and promotion of livelihoods and local economic activity. The organisation presents itself as an association created by Lebanese members for Lebanese communities, coordinating with partners, government bodies, donors, and other non-governmental organisations. Its stated goal is to offer assistance, share educational resources, and support community-led resilience so that the path toward social justice remains open and locally owned.