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UN official hopes aid pledges for Lebanon will be honored

BEIRUT, March 27 (KUNA) -- The UN Resident Coordinator in Lebanon, Ross Mountain, has expressed hope that states due to take part in the third donations' conference for Syria would honor their pledges and support for Lebanon.
Mountain, in a statement, hoped the international donors, taking part in the conference to be hosted by Kuwait in the end of this month, would honor their financial commitments toward Lebanon and back the country and individuals in need.
He declared that the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allotted USD 18 million to support development projects in the country.
The allocated fund would be helpful to meet some financial needs in Lebanon, "a country at the brink .. as the Syrian crisis enters its fifth year," Mountain said.
The earmarked money will be invested in executing ventures in the eastern Bekaa valley, the northern Akkar area and other northern regions, where bulk of the Syrian refugees have settled.
The fund is forecast to secure necessities for some 297,000 persons, he said.
The CERF, since 2012, has specialized more than USD 39 million worth of aid for Lebanon. The Beirut Government has worked out a plan, in coordination with the UN, to secure humanitarian assistance to the most impoverished people in the country. (end) ayb.rk