Lebanon has signed an agreement with Microsoft Corp. to use the company's products and training programs to develop the skills of public sector employees, Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said Wednesday. The agreement gives the Lebanese government immediate access to Microsoft's latest products, said a statement issued by Hariri's office. It did not say when the agreement was signed. Fuad Saad, Lebanon's state minister for administrative reform, said the deal "allows us to upgrade all our existing Microsoft applications to the current releases, while providing us with a decreased total cost of ownership by simplifying the administration, usage and management of software licenses throughout the government." U.S. software giant Microsoft opened an office in Beirut in 1999.
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