EU okays $155M for Syrian refugees in Lebanon, Jordan

The EU will support Syrian refugees and host communities in Jordan and Lebanon with €130 million ($155 million), the bloc announced on Friday.

The EU adopted a €130 million package to help Syrian refugees and hosting local communities in Jordan and Lebanon in providing social protection, healthcare, education and sanitization.

Lebanon will receive €98 million, while Jordan will get €32 million.

The support also aims at helping the COVID-19 vaccination in Lebanon, as well as assisting the reconstruction of Beirut’s port area after last August’s devastating blast whose consequences affected the host community and Syrian refugees as well.

“The EU will continue to do all it can to support the Syrian people, Syrian civil society, Syrian refugees and their host communities in neighboring countries. They deserve a brighter, safer and more prosperous future,” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement.

He also pointed out that “15 March 2021 sadly marks ten years since the start of the Syrian crisis. A tragic anniversary; one we would rather not have.”

On March 29-30, the bloc will host the fifth donor conference on “supporting the future of Syria and the region.”

Syria has been in civil war since early 2011 when the regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests.

Hundreds of thousands of people were killed, and more than 10 million others displaced in the past ten years, according to UN officials.