The National Social Security Fund (NSSF) of Lebanon may be forced to stop providing its services to a third of the Lebanese population, an official has warned.
In a TV statement on Monday, Director-General of the NSSF Mohamad Karaki reiterated his recurring request for the state to pay its dues to the Fund.
He remarked that all ministries and administrations have been getting their due payments except for the NSSF.
“Unfortunately, the Lebanese state, since 2002 and till today, hasn’t dealt positively with social security,” he said.
Over the years, funds owed to the NSSF have piled up to reach approximately 4,500 billion Lebanese pounds, according to Karaki.
“We have said clearly that if people were to know that social security would be stopped, the country would not go on for a single day,” the official warned.
Karaki stressed that the NSSF would not be able to continue covering people’s healthcare fees if the state did not urgently provide the Fund with payments, including settling what remains unpaid of the 2020 budget.
As for the end-of-service compensations, Karaki denied rumors that they were unavailable, affirming that they will remain in place until at least the year 2065.
