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Record Number of Travelers Depart Beirut Airport in One Day

A general view shows Beirut's international airport, Lebanon November 21, 2015. (Reuters)
A general view shows Beirut's international airport, Lebanon November 21, 2015. (Reuters)
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Record Number of Travelers Depart Beirut Airport in One Day

A general view shows Beirut's international airport, Lebanon November 21, 2015. (Reuters)
A general view shows Beirut's international airport, Lebanon November 21, 2015. (Reuters)

A record number of people departed Beirut’s Rafik Hariri International Airport on Friday, said Interior Minister Raya al-Hassan.

She said 22,800 travelers left the country, expressing in a tweet her “understanding” of the arduous wait in queues.

“We will exert all possible efforts to overcome” the long lines at the facility, she said.

The number of travelers is expected to increase next week with the end of the Eid al-Adha holiday as more Lebanese expatriates return to their homes abroad.

Airport director Fadi al-Hassan predicted to Asharq Al-Awsat that the number of travelers between August 19 and 25 will exceed the figures recorded on Friday.

Some 4 million travelers were recorded at Lebanon’s only functioning airport during the first half of 2019, marking a 4 percent rise for the same period last year.

The number of travelers in July jumped 2.65 percent compared to 2018.

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Pakistan Set to Receive $20 Billion Loan From World Bank

FILE PHOTO-People wait for their turn to buy low-priced bun-kabab from a shop in Karachi, Pakistan June 10, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
FILE PHOTO-People wait for their turn to buy low-priced bun-kabab from a shop in Karachi, Pakistan June 10, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
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Pakistan Set to Receive $20 Billion Loan From World Bank

FILE PHOTO-People wait for their turn to buy low-priced bun-kabab from a shop in Karachi, Pakistan June 10, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro
FILE PHOTO-People wait for their turn to buy low-priced bun-kabab from a shop in Karachi, Pakistan June 10, 2022. REUTERS/Akhtar Soomro

Pakistan is set to receive a loan of $20 billion from the World Bank over the next 10 years, aimed at improving the country’s key sectors, sources told Geo News on Saturday.

According to sources in the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the loan will be part of the World Bank's support under the Country Partnership Framework 2025-35, which focuses on sustainable economic development.

The loan is expected to be approved by the WB's Board of Directors on January 14. Once approved, Martin Raiser, the lender's Vice President, is expected to visit Islamabad to discuss the loan program and its implementation.

In addition to the $20 billion, two subsidiary entities of the World Bank will assist Pakistan in securing another $20 billion in private loans.

This would bring the total financial package to $40 billion, which will be allocated towards infrastructure development, climate resilience projects, and improving social services.

Meanwhile, The News newspaper reported that the government, in its bid to achieve an economic revival, has launched the National Economic Transformation Plan which aims to achieve ambitious economic targets, including doubling GDP growth and halving poverty over a five-year period.

The plan envisages attracting $29 billion anticipated investment under the supervision of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) including $10 billion from the UAE, $5 billion from Saudi Arabia, $2 billion from Qatar, $2 billion from Azerbaijan, and $10 billion from Kuwait.

Meanwhile, the gross domestic product (GDP) target has been set at 6% of the GDP till the Fiscal Year 2028-29 whereas the per capita income in dollar terms is projected to go up to $2,405 from $1,680.