President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, asserted that “the amounts allocated by the World Bank, through a loan amounting to $ 246 million, will be distributed within the framework of the social safety net financing plan prepared by the government, in full transparency and fairness to the poorest families in Lebanon, without selectivity or discretion”, considering that it is the simplest duty to help these families to overcome the current difficult stage, whose difficulties have been exacerbated by the economic-financial crisis and the global health crisis resulting from the outbreak of the Corona pandemic.
President Aoun stressed that “while we are working to combat the results of this pandemic, especially in terms of immunizing the immunity of the Lebanese by securing the required vaccine, we will continue to work in parallel in order to overcome the difficult economic stage and its effects on the various segments of the Lebanese people, to start again towards recovery and advancement”. The President then thanked the World Bank for its stand with Lebanon in these delicate circumstances, which is “a sign of continued confidence in Lebanon and its people, as well as in its ability to rise again from its economic and financial setbacks”.
Stances of President Aoun came while chairing a meeting to launch a plan to finance the social safety net through a loan provided by the World Bank, amounting 246 million US Dollars.
The meeting was attended by Caretaker Prime Minister Dr. Hassan Diab, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Zeina Akar, Finance Minister Ghazi Wazni, Minister of Social Affairs and Tourism Ramzi Musharrafieh, Director of the World Bank in Lebanon Sarouj Kumar, Director General of the Presidency of the Republic Dr. Antoine Choucair, Secretary General Presidency of the Council of Ministers Judge Mahmoud Makkiyeh, responsible for the mechanism project in the Presidency of the Government, Marie Louise Abu Jaoudeh, Coordinator of Development Programs at the World Bank, Mona Cozy, and Head of Operations Office at the World Bank Hanin Al-Sayed.
During the meeting, President Aoun talked about the importance of continuing the national program to support the poorest families in Lebanon, especially in these circumstances, thanking those who worked to reach this program, and stressing the importance of adopting transparency in implementation to reach the desired goals.
President Aoun also addressed the security situation in the country and the events that took place in Tripoli yesterday night where he reiterated the need to punish those who rioted in the city, especially since they are known by the security services and their political identities are known, pointing out that instructions were given to the security forces to maintain security in the capital of the north and preventing attacks on public and private property.
Then, PM Diab spoke about yesterday’s events and the use of city squares to send fiery political messages, considering that this is “unacceptable”, pointing to the possibility of the Supreme Council of Defense convening to discuss the unacceptable events that happened in Tripoli and Lebanon.
Premier Diab indicated that the criminals who burned the Tripoli municipality must be arrested, because by what they did they expressed deep hatred towards Tripoli and its dignity and “what happened is not as a result of popular demands”. He indicated that measures would be taken to prevent a recurrence of what happened.
After that, the Secretary-General of the Council of Ministers, Judge Mahmoud Makkiyeh, presented a historical overview of the national program to support the poorest families in Lebanon, which was launched in 2009 and the amendments that were made to it during the past years, in addition to the path of adopting the food card from the year 2014 until the end of the year 2020 where total transfers of food labels reached about $ 93 billion through the World Food Program.
Source: Al-Manar Eglish Website
