In this paper I examine the underlying notion at work when the French authorities began setting up the structure of Syria and Lebanon's welfare services.I have a specific focus on poverty alleviation. My sources are primarily based on French diplomatic records which are often intelligence reports so I provide caveats on this.​I begin setting the context by looking at the pre-existing Ottoman system and the significant role of Anglo-American philanthropy in the Near East. There will be a short discussion of the conceptual frameworks, both European and Islamic, that tended toward welfare for the poor. I then examine the concrete initial expedient measures taken by the post-World War military administration as well as that administrations slow and variegated transformation into bureaucratic legal structures that allowed a greater degree of participation and intervention from Syro-Lebanese political channels. I expand on this Syro-Lebanese role, examining the important popular demand for amelioration of public policy as reflected in the contemporary press, and finish with an extensive look at the use of international networks by Syrians and Lebanese to put pressure on the authorities. This final section will look at the Syro-Lebanese immigrants in the Americas as well as Syrian and Lebanese lobbyists in Geneva, Paris and London. I conclude by considering the impact of the outbreak of the 1925 revolution on these efforts. I also offer tentative conclusions regarding the nascent welfare state and welfarism and its importance for Middle East Studies.