I wanted to emphasize the degree of the partnership between the United Nations, the World Bank and the Government (of Lebanon) in pursuit of this venture over the past year. It started with the Impact Assessment that President Kim mentioned.
The headlines from that are well known – the estimated $2.6 billion cost of the Syrian crisis on Government over two years, the numbers of people who might be pushed into poverty as a result of the crisis. That prompted first of all the International Support Group meeting which UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon convened in New York in September, which President Kim attended alongside President Michel Sleiman. That in turn prompted the Roadmap to which President Kim referred, which again was developed in collaboration with the Government and with members of the UN country team collectively here in Lebanon. The International Support Group meeting pointed also to the creation of the Trust Fund which President Kim highlighted in his remarks. Since that day on the 25th of September last year, the truth is the burden has continued to grow. UNHCR record monthly, 50,000 additional refugees seeking registration even now.
It is evident, as President Kim said, in the tensions which exist between refugees and their hosts particularly in those areas of Lebanon where there are most refugees -- in the Bekaa and in the far north. But one would also have to note too the generosity to which the Prime Minister (Tamam Salam) and Mr. Kim have referred and which is evident in the fact that there are few actual incidents. But it is a dangerous and difficult situation and assistance is needed.
Like the Prime Minister and President Kim, I thank donors for their help to date. I have seen the impact on the ground, in public schools, in water systems in the North and so on. But when it comes to support for municipalities and for Government programmes, the truth of the matter is that the assistance received so far has been minimal as compared to the need. I think we all know that. It is also true that there have been delays in putting in place some of the mechanisms which were envisaged in the original International Support Group conclusions, the Roadmap, getting it up and running and agreed collectively; and the Trust Fund.
I think it is right to judge, exactly as has been said, that we now face a crisis, a crisis in which the burden is very heavily felt by us all. The Government is reviewing its policies including in regard to the support mechanisms and so on and doing so in transparency with the United Nations. My concluding point is that it is excellent news that as a result of that, the Multi-donor Trust Fund, the Lebanon Syrian Conflict Trust Fund, is now up and running. There are other vehicles for assistance, for funding, available for host communities and Governmental programmes but this is the only one established specifically to provide assistance to the Government and municipalities, established specifically to mitigate the impact of the Syrian crisis. The governance structure is simple but includes donors and the United Nations as well as the World Bank. We very much hope that it will attract more contributions in addition to the excellent help that has been forthcoming so far from Norway, from Finland, from France and I should add from the World Bank itself.
Thank you.