EU Announces €505 Million Support for Lebanon

The European Commission announced a financial support of €505 million for Lebanon for the years 2026 and 2027, the second part of a €1 billion package announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during her visit to Beirut in May 2024.

The new funding will cover three main areas and support Lebanon in advancing key reforms, strengthening its economic recovery, enhancing security and border management, and maintaining essential services for the most vulnerable. It will also help Lebanon address the consequences of instability, conflict, and displacement in the region.

The €505 million package will focus on the following:

• Basic services and support for the most vulnerable: Ensuring access to education, health, social protection, and water. This includes cash assistance for the most disadvantaged families and persons with disabilities, as well as access to primary healthcare. The EU will also support durable solutions for Syrian refugees, including safe, voluntary, and dignified returns, while assisting Lebanese authorities in gradually taking over and sustaining essential services.

• Recovery, reforms, and security: Supporting Lebanon’s reform agenda, including the justice sector, regulatory and oversight bodies, parliament, and human rights. EU support will also contribute to strengthening the security sector, border management, private sector adaptability, and economic recovery in conflict-affected areas.

• Civil society and culture: Supporting organizations working in women's rights, youth, minorities, and persons with disabilities, as well as initiatives promoting democratic participation, transparency, and anti-corruption efforts. Funding will also help strengthen social cohesion and protect Lebanon’s cultural heritage.

European Commissioner for the Mediterranean, Dubravka Šuica, announced this funding in New York, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly.