The European Union supports Syrian refugees with €17 million more

The European Union (EU) has increased its humanitarian funding in Lebanon for the Syria refugee crisis response by an additional €17 million ($18.5 million). The funding is part of an aid package of €64 million ($69.6 million) to help people affected by the worsening Syrian crisis, in Syria and its neighboring countries.

“Life for Syrian refugees is getting harder and harder, as they have spent most of what savings they had on food, housing and medical treatment”, said Bruno Rotival, Head of office in Lebanon for the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department (ECHO). “Families are getting deeper and deeper into debt and many Syrian children are forced to work to help the family financially.”

This aid will enable the secondary health service in the country to treat more refugees. “The high cost of health services in Lebanon, which are largely privatized, has made it difficult for refugees to seek the treatment they need,” the EU statement said. Other funds will provide cash assistance for the most vulnerable families, who are struggling to find funds for food and shelter.

Since 2012, EU humanitarian funding for organizations responding to the consequences of the Syrian crisis in Lebanon has reached €226.1 million (more than $245 million).

The country is the hardest-hit by the Syrian crisis, hosting more than 1.1 million Syrian refugees, or one quarter of the total population, it said.