Lebanon

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Country summary

Capital

Beirut

Borders

Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km

Government type

republic

Population

4,017,095 (July 2010 est.)[1]

Population growth

1.107% (2010 est.)[1]

Life expectancy

73.66 years[1]

Unemployment

9.2% (2007 est.)[1]

Index of Economic Freedom

89[2]

Corruption Perceptions Index

130[3]

Doing Business ranking

108[4]


Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French separated out the region of Lebanon in 1920, and granted this area independence in 1943. A lengthy civil war (1975-1990) devastated the country, but Lebanon has since made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater voice in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, Lebanon has conducted several successful elections. Most militias have been reduced or disbanded, with the exception of Hizballah, designated by the US State Department as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, and Palestinian militant groups. During Lebanon's civil war, the Arab League legitimized in the Ta'if Accord Syria's troop deployment, numbering about 16,000 based mainly east of Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000 and the passage in September 2004 of UNSCR 1559 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs - encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI and 22 others in February 2005 led to massive demonstrations in Beirut against the Syrian presence ("the Cedar Revolution"), and Syria withdrew the remainder of its military forces in April 2005. In May-June 2005, Lebanon held its first legislative elections since the end of the civil war free of foreign interference, handing a majority to the bloc led by Sa'ad HARIRI, the slain prime minister's son. In July 2006, Hizballah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers leading to a 34-day conflict with Israel in which approximately 1,200 Lebanese civilians were killed. UNSCR 1701 ended the war in August 2006, and Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) deployed throughout the country for the first time in decades, charged with securing Lebanon's borders against weapons smuggling and maintaining a weapons-free zone in south Lebanon with the help of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). The LAF in May-September 2007 battled Sunni extremist group Fatah al-Islam in the Nahr al-Barid Palestinian refugee camp, winning a decisive victory, but destroying the camp and displacing 30,000 Palestinian residents. Lebanese politicians in November 2007 were unable to agree on a successor to Emile LAHUD when he stepped down as president, creating a political vacuum until the election of LAF Commander Gen. Michel SULAYMAN in May 2008 and the formation of a new unity government in July 2008. Legislative elections in June 2009 again produced victory for the bloc led by Sa'ad HARIRI, but a period of prolonged negotiation over the composition of the cabinet ensued. A national unity government was finally formed in November 2009 and approved by the National Assembly the following month. In January 2010, Lebanon assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2010-11 term.[1]

Economical characteristics

  • Currency: Lebanese pound (ISO code: LBP)
  • Central bank discount rate: 10% (31 December 2009)[1]
  • Commercial banks lending rate: 9.62% (30 November 2009)[1]
  • Stock of money (M1): $3.212 billion (30 November 2009)[1]
  • Quasi money (with M1 makes M2): $77.8 billion (30 November 2009)[1]

Notable events:

Statistics

Statistic / Year 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
GDP (million USD)[6] 17 391 17 260 17 650 19 152 20 083 21 789 21 861 22 438 25 047 29 264
Govt. debt (% of GDP)[7]
Govt. revenue (% of GDP)[8] 16.031 16.009 18.652 20.415 21.311 20.793 19.895 20.905 21.510
Govt. expenses (% of GDP)[9] 30.511 29.009 28.352 30.472 26.071 26.398 31.125 31.294 30.397
Debt to revenue (years)

References

Note: statistical data was rounded. Different sources may use different methodologies for their estimates. Debt to revenue is calculated by dividing the two variables from their original ('unrounded') values. It represents how long it would a government take to repay its entire debt if it used its whole revenue for this purpose.

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 CIA - The World Factbook. "Lebanon", from The World Factbook. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  2. Heritage Foundation. "Lebanon", Economic Freedom Score. A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  3. Transparency International. "Lebanon", Corruption Perceptions Index 2009. A lower ranking is better; but please note that the numbers cannot be compared between countries or years due to different methodology. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  4. Doing Business. "Lebanon", Doing Business 2010 (part of The World Bank Group). A lower ranking is better; but please be careful when comparing between different countries or years. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  5. Carmen M. Reinhart and Kenneth S. Rogoff. "This Time is Different", Princeton University Press, ISBN 978-0-691-14216-6, p. 372. (The list does not claim to be complete.) Referenced 2011-07-20.
  6. World Bank. "Lebanon: GDP", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  7. World Bank. "Lebanon: government debt", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  8. World Bank. "Lebanon: government revenue", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.
  9. World Bank. "Lebanon: government expenses", from World Bank Data. Referenced 2010-09-30.

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