BEIRUT,  (Xinhua) — The Rafic Hariri International Airport in Lebanese capital Beirut is not in need for expansion but only needs to be properly organized to host increasing passengers, said Parliament Member Yassin Jaber on Tuesday. “It is not necessary to pay 100 million U.S. dollars to expand the airport in the midst of the current deteriorating economic situation,” he was quoted by Elnashra, an independent online newspaper, as saying. Jaber noted that Beirut’s airport covers an area of 5.5 square kilometers and hosted 8 million passengers in 2018 while French city Nice’s airport covers 3.7 square kilometers but it was capable of hosting 13 million passengers in 2017. Officials have on many occasions called for the expansion of the airport in Beirut for the increasing number of passengers. A study released by the airport’s research and studies department in March 2018 predicted that as many as 10 million passengers would travel via the airport by 2020 while it has the capacity of hosting only 6 million passengers annually. Lebanese Public Works Minister Youssef Fenianos said last month that the airport is in need of 100 million dollars for renovation and expansion. Earlier this year, Lebanese Finance Ministry approved 18 million dollars in funding for the expansion.