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NAVIGATION
Lebanese Republic
Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah
GOVERNMENT
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Country name:
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conventional long form: Lebanese Republic
conventional short form: Lebanon local short form: Lubnan local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah |
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Government type:
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republic |
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Capital:
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Beirut |
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Administrative divisions:
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6 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Beqaa, Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye |
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Independence:
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22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day, 22 November (1943) |
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Constitution:
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23 May 1926, amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989 |
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Legal system:
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mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
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Suffrage:
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21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education |
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Emile LAHUD (since 24 November 1998)
head of government: Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI (since 23 October 2000); Deputy Prime Minister Issam FARES (since 23 October 2000) cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and members of the National Assembly elections: president elected by the National Assembly for a six-year term; election last held 15 October 1998 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly; by custom, the president is a Maronite Christian, the prime minister is a Sunni Muslim, and the speaker of the legislature is a Shi'a Muslim election results: Emile LAHUD elected president; National Assembly vote - 118 votes in favor, 0 against, 10 abstentions |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral National Assembly or Majlis Alnuwab (Arabic) or Assemblee Nationale (French) (128 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of sectarian proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 27 August and 3 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - Muslim 57% (of which Sunni 25%, Sh'ite 25%, Druze 6%, Alawite less than 1%), Christian 43% (of which Maronite 23%); seats by party - Muslim 64 (of which Sunni 27, Sh'ite 27, Druze 8, Alawite 2), Christian 64 (of which Maronite 34) |
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Judicial branch:
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four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases); Constitutional Council (called for in Ta'if Accord - rules on constitutionality of laws); Supreme Council (hears charges against the president and prime minister as needed) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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political party activity is organized along largely sectarian lines; numerous political groupings exist, consisting of individual political figures and followers motivated by religious, clan, and economic considerations |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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NA |
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International organization participation:
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ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AL, AMF, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (observer) |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Farid ABBOUD
consulate(s) general: Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles FAX: [1] (202) 939-6324 telephone: [1] (202) 939-6320 chancery: 2560 28th Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Vincent Martin BATTLE
embassy: Awkar, Lebanon mailing address: P. O. Box 70840, Awkar, Lebanon; PSC 815, Box 2, FPO AE 09836-0002 telephone: 011-961-4-543-600/542-600 FAX: 011-961-4-544-136 |
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Flag description:
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three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width), and red with a green cedar tree centered in the white band |
ECONOMY
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Economy - overview:
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The 1975-91 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Peace enabled the central government to restore control in Beirut, begin collecting taxes, and regain access to key port and government facilities. Economic recovery was helped by a financially sound banking system and resilient small- and medium-scale manufacturers. Family remittances, banking services, manufactured and farm exports, and international aid provided the main sources of foreign exchange. Lebanon's economy made impressive gains since the launch in 1993 of "Horizon 2000," the government's $20 billion reconstruction program. Real GDP grew 8% in 1994, 7% in 1995, 4% in 1996 and in 1997 but slowed to 2% in 1998, -1% in 1999, and -0.5% in 2000. Growth recovered slightly in 2001 to 1%. During the 1990s annual inflation fell to almost 0% from more than 100%. Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure. The government nonetheless faces serious challenges in the economic arena. It has funded reconstruction by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In order to reduce the ballooning national debt, the re-installed HARIRI government began an economic austerity program to reign in government expenditures, increase revenue collection, and privatize state enterprises. The Hariri government met with international donors at the Paris II conference in November 2002 to seek bilateral assistance in order to restructure its higher interest rate bearing domestic debt obligations at lower rates. While privatization of state-owned enterprises had not occurred by the end of 2002, the government had successfullly avoided a currency devaluation and debt default in 2002. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power parity - $18.8 billion (2001 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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1% (2001 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power parity - $5,200 (2001 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture: 12%
industry: 21% services: 67% (2000) |
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Population below poverty line:
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28% (1999 est.) |
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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
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lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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0.5% (2001 est.) |
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Labor force:
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1.5 million
note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (1999 est.) (2001 est.) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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services NA%, industry NA%, agriculture NA% |
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Unemployment rate:
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18% (1997 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues: $4.6 billion
expenditures: $8.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
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Industries:
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banking; food processing; jewelry; cement; textiles; mineral and chemical products; wood and furniture products; oil refining; metal fabricating |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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NA% |
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Electricity - production:
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7.95 billion kWh (2000) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel: 97%
hydro: 3% other: 0% (2000) nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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8.643 billion kWh (2000) |
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Electricity - exports:
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0 kWh (2000) |
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Electricity - imports:
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1.25 billion kWh (2000) |
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Agriculture - products:
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citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats |
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Exports:
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$700 million f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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foodstuffs and tobacco, textiles, chemicals, precious stones, metal and metal products, electrical equipment and products, jewelry, paper and paper products |
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Exports - partners:
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Saudi Arabia 11%, UAE 11%, Switzerland 7%, US 7%, France 5%, Iraq 4%, Jordan 4%, Kuwait 4%, Syria 4% (2000) |
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Imports:
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$6.6 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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foodstuffs, machinery and transport equipment, consumer goods, chemicals, textiles, metals, fuels, agricultural foods |
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Imports - partners:
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Italy 11%, France 8%, Germany 8%, US 7%, Switzerland 6%, China 5%, Syria 5%, UK 4% (2000) |
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Debt - external:
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$8.4 billion (2001 est.) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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$3.5 billion (pledges 1997-2001) |
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Currency:
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Lebanese pound (LBP) |
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Currency code:
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LBP |
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Exchange rates:
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Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (January 2002), 1,507.5 (2001), 1,507.5 (2000), 1,507.8 (1999), 1,516.1 (1998), 1,539.5 (1997) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year |