Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Thursday sponsored at the Beirut Port Management and Investment building, the signature ceremony of an agreement which will manage, operate and maintain the container terminal at the port.

The agreement was signed by the Chairman of the Temporary Committee for Management and Investment of the Port of Beirut, Omar Itani, and CMA-CGM Company Representative, Joe Dakkak, in the presence of Lebanon’s Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Dr. Ali Hamieh, French Minister of Transport, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, French Ambassador to Lebanon, Anne Grillo, and Director General of Land and Maritime Transport Ahmad Tamer.

In his delivered word, Premier Mikati welcomed the French Minister, thanking “France for standing by Lebanon.”

Mikati saluted the Minister of Public Works and Transport for his relentless work on the issue of the port and joint transport.

He said: “Today, Minister Hamieh signed an agreement with the French Minister of Transport comprising 50 buses as a donation for public transport, and there will also be an integrated plan. What we have done today is part of an integrated plan drawn up by the Minister of Public Works and Transport.”

Djebbari, in turn, stressed that “the purpose of his visit is to confirm France’s continuous support for Lebanon in several sectors, such as ports, transport and the airport,” stressing that “activating cooperation between the two countries will increase.”

Minister Hamieh expressed “his appreciation and thanks for the efforts made to achieve this agreement,” noting that “this step is a link in a reform path that we are undertaking in all facilities, especially in the port of Beirut.”