UNIPATH STAFF
Grants and low-interest loans from the World Bank would help Lebanon cope with the more than 1 million Syrian refugees now in the country, Lebanese Finance Minister Ali Hassan Khalil said.
At a meeting in March 2016 with a visiting World Bank delegation, Khalil said the grant money could help with the immediate needs of the refugees, while the loans could be used to finance infrastructure improvements. Additionally, the World Bank could help Lebanon ease its public debt service by covering the interest on its Eurobonds.
“This visit was an important opportunity to take a closer look at the situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon and to assess the means by which Lebanon could be supported,” Khalil said. “We have briefed our visitors on the challenges that Lebanon undergoes at this level and on the size of support that Lebanon needs to prop up the different sectors.”
He said he hoped the meeting would result in meaningful support but emphasized that the overall financial situation in Lebanon is stable. “All the facts confirm that we are capable of remaining steadfast amid the prevailing circumstances,” he said.
Source: Lebanese Ministry of Information