BEIRUT: Caretaker Social Affairs Minister Wael Abu Faour and U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Derek Plumbly discussed Thursday the establishment of a fiduciary fund aimed at providing more aid for Syrian refugees in Lebanon. The fund would be managed jointly by the Lebanese government and the World Bank with the purpose of serving both Syrian refugees and Lebanese host communities, Abu Faour said. He added that the fund would also help Lebanese schools accommodate displaced Syrians as well as improve the health sector and infrastructure.
A study conducted by American medical journal The Lancet last month found that primary and secondary health care services in Lebanon were available to refugees, but that the displaced community faced out-of-pocket payments that its members could not afford. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees covers only 75 percent of expenses for secondary care and none for serious illnesses that require treatments such as chemotherapy or blood transfusions.
In Syria, health care facilities have been destroyed, which has led to an increase in infectious diseases like typhoid and hepatitis, the report also noted. It added that there needed to be an increased effort to provide necessary health care to refugees, especially to children.
Separately Thursday, residents of the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp closed down the agency’s centers in protest of a United Nations Relief and Works Agency decision to reduce its services and end its comprehensive emergency plan.
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19/07/2013
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