Today, Wednesday, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati chaired a meeting for the "ministerial committee tasked with developing and implementing the national strategy for social protection." After the meeting, Minister of Social Affairs Hector Hajjar stated that "amendments to the strategy were required in May 2022, according to the decision that aimed to clarify the strategy for Lebanese people specifically. There had been confusion between Lebanese and residents, and we have rephrased the strategy so that it is exclusively for the Lebanese, who will be the sole beneficiaries. Non-Lebanese individuals will receive support from international institutions in accordance with the constitution and Lebanese laws." He added: "We have finished drafting the strategy and presented it today to the ministerial committee, and we requested the ministers to provide their feedback. We have until the 22nd of this month to finalize the writing of the strategy and have it adopted by the Council of Ministers."
Participating in the meeting were the ministers of education and higher education Abbas Halabi, justice Henry Khoury, finance Youssef Khalil, social affairs Hector Hajjar, public health Firas Abyad, and economy and trade Amin Salam. Mikati also met with Minister of Justice Henry Khoury and Minister of Social Affairs Hector Hajjar, during which they discussed the file of Syrian refugees.
Additionally, the Prime Minister welcomed Ghana's Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey at the head of a delegation, where they discussed bilateral relations and enhancing cooperation between the two countries. Mikati also met with Lebanon's Ambassador to Egypt Ali Halabi.
He received MP Ahmad Al Khair and a delegation of Lebanese expatriates from Australia, which included Sheikh Faiz Saif, lawyer Khaled Al Khair, and gentlemen: Omar Yassin, Farouk Sheikh, Hafiz Alam Al Din, Mustafa Mahfoud, Baha Nasaba, Jamal Al Khair, Fawaz Zarika, and Bassam Ibrahim. After the meeting, MP Al Khair stated: "We visited the President with a delegation of Lebanese expatriates in Australia, where they presented some issues they face, whether at the level of the consulate or regarding procedures related to spiritual and religious references in Lebanon. The President noted these points on his agenda and promised us he would follow up on them."
