UN e-cards to benefit 800,000 Syrian refugees

A new electronic voucher programme in Lebanon will allow thousands of Syrian refugees meet their food needs and boost the local economy, the UN food relief agency has announced.

About 800,000 refugees could use electronic cards or e-cards at participating shops in Lebanon under an initiative by the World Food Programme(WFP) and private sector partner MasterCard, a WFP press release said Friday.

"These e-cards will allow Syrian refugees to choose the foods they want at a particular time," WFP Assistant Executive Director Elisabeth Rasmusson said.

Families will receive a card loaded with $27 per person monthly, which can be redeemed against a list of food items at participating local stores.

Besides Lebanon, the WFP will introduce a similar programme for Syrian refugees in Jordan - initially for 300,000 - by the year-end. The programme will continue in the coming year, Xinhua reported.

The two countries are hosting the largest number of refugees, Rasmusson said.

The collaboration is part of a larger multi-year partnership with MasterCard launched in September 2012.

The programme was first tested in September over 2,000 Syrian households in the southern Lebanese town of Nabatiyeh and is meant to replace WFP's paper vouchers.

"The e-cards also provide business opportunity for local merchants," said Muhannad Hadi, emergency coordinator, WFP.