Ahmed Shaaban (Beirut, Cairo)
Economists and analysts have underestimated the ability of European aid to solve Lebanon’s problems, which is facing several crises, including security tensions in the south of the country, the rise in the number of Syrian refugees and illegal immigration, the economic crisis, and the presidential vacuum.
The European Union recently provided an aid package to Lebanon, including support for the army in order to protect territorial waters and prevent illegal immigration boats from leaving for Cyprus and Greece.
Lebanese political analyst Nofal Daou explained that European aid is considered a temporary solution, because there is skepticism that the promises are great and the results are usually below the required level.
Daou considered, in a statement to Al-Ittihad, that if the West and the international community want to help Lebanon overcome the repercussions of security tensions in the south, the complex political situation and the presidential vacuum, then the main problem must be addressed by preventing foreign interference in the Middle East region and the Lebanese affairs, and resolving the crisis in Syria. And ending the Arab-Israeli conflict by establishing two states.
For his part, the Lebanese economic expert, Khaled Abu Shakra, stated that there is European aid to the Lebanese army that aims primarily to limit the migration of displaced Syrians in Lebanon to European countries via smuggling routes, and to control the borders to prevent the influx of more displaced people.
Abu Shakra said, in a statement to Al-Ittihad, that this aid may lead to some results on the ground, but on the other hand, international bodies, specifically the programs concerned with displaced Syrians, such as the High Commissioner for Refugees, the World Food Program, and the World Bank, reduced in the year 2024 Its aid to Lebanon will increase significantly.
He pointed out that the World Bank objected to the government’s acquisition of the social protection loan and decided not to complete it, which led to the cessation of the “Aman” program, which succeeded in reaching 93,000 families, in addition to reducing the loan for the poorest families, which the Ministry of Social Affairs benefits from, from $147 million to $147 million. $33.3 million in 2024, which has a significant impact on the Lebanese community hosting the displaced.
Lebanon has been suffering from an economic collapse since 2019, and Lebanon has not implemented most of the reforms required by the International Monetary Fund to obtain a loan, but it has asked friendly countries to continue supporting it.
Abu Shakra pointed out that the World Food Program reduced its aid to displaced Syrians from one million beneficiaries to 300,000, stressing that all of this confirms that the international community is reducing aid to Lebanon, despite the high levels of poverty, and this increases problems and exacerbates crises, which is what happened recently in terms of increased rates of Crime and theft.
More than one and a half million Syrian refugees reside in Lebanon, having fled the war in their country since March 2011.
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