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Donors pledge 550 mln USD aid for Lebanon to tackle refugee crisis

Xinhua, May 10, 2016 Adjust font size:

Four donor countries pledged to provide Lebanon with 550 million U.S. dollars in 2016 to help it cope with the refugee crisis, the Annahar daily reported Tuesday.

"Following the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference held in London on February 4, we, the co-host donors, met the Prime Minister Tammam Salam and Social Affairs Minister Rashid Derbas to reiterate our strong support for Lebanon's economic stabilization and social development as set out in the Lebanese Government's Statement of Intent" UK Ambassador Hugo Shorter said in a statement on behalf of co-host donors.

"We can today announce that, collectively, Germany, Kuwait, Norway and the United Kingdom, will provide over 550 million dollars this year for Lebanon. This funding is now being programmed in coordination with Lebanese institutions, the United Nations and the World Bank" the ambassador added.

"More broadly, the UN has confirmed that of the pledges made at the London Conference, over 1 billion dollars have already been allocated for Lebanon for the coming year," he pointed.

This funding will be channeled to the priorities requested by the Lebanese government, Shorter said.

The priorities include "investing in national and municipal infrastructure to create short and longer term employment for all" and "investing in the education system so that public schools are safer for children and are able to deliver higher quality education for all, ensuring there is no lost generation," the UK envoy added.

"These investments are also essential to position Lebanon as the hub for the eventual reconstruction of Syria, when the Syrian refugees return," Shorter added.

According to the United Nations Higher Commission for Refugees, Lebanon hosts more than 1.1 million Syrians who fled their war-torn country since the beginning of the uprising against the regime of President Bashar Assad in March 2011. Endit