BEIRUT, Oct. 1 (Xinhua) -- Philippe Lazzarini, deputy UN special coordinator for Lebanon, urged Lebanese prime minister Tuesday to restore trust in the country's economy.

"It is very important to work on restoring confidence in Lebanon's economy," Lazzarini said following his meeting with Saad Hariri at Grand Serail, a statement by Hariri's office reported.

Lazzarini said that the 2020 state budget should be submitted on time to inform people about the reforms that are going to be adopted.

"It is not important to just make an announcement about the timeline of the 2020 state budget but it is important to introduce the right reforms," he said.

Lazzarini said he has also given a few advices to Hariri about reforms.

Lebanon is facing a great challenge of reducing its budget deficit which has reached 11.4 percent of GDP with a gross public debt of 86 billion U.S. dollars by the end of July 2019.

Lebanon has already approved its 2019 state budget by cutting the overall budget deficit from 11.4 percent to 7.59 percent.

Lebanon's government is currently discussing the 2020 budget which is expected to include more structural reforms.

However, some economists have been complaining about the lack of proper and serious reforms in the 2020 draft budget at a time when the country needs to adopt measures that would save its economy and productive sectors from further deterioration. Enditem

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