Lebanon is currently facing a devastating reality where the financial crisis has left countless individuals struggling to make ends meet. Despite their hardships, these people are not receiving any support from the government and have been forced to rely solely on themselves for survival. As a result of this dire situation, many Lebanese citizens find themselves living in abject poverty with little hope for improvement or progress toward achieving their dreams. The impact of this ongoing crisis cannot be overstated - it has caused immense suffering and despair throughout Lebanon's population while simultaneously eroding faith in what was once considered an idyllic lifestyle within its borders.
🆕 Update
There has been much talk about the difficult economic conditions in Lebanon lately, but one video stands out for its comprehensive analysis. You can find it on ColdFusion's YouTube channel and gain a deeper understanding of the situation at hand.
👉 Table Of Content (TOC).
- Introducing The Lebanese Economic Crisis.
- High Unemployment Rates.
- Deep Poverty.
- Hyperinflation.
- Basic Medicines Are Unavailable.
- The Majority Of Homes Lack Electricity.
- Conclusion.
- References.
Introducing The Lebanese Economic Crisis.
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The current crisis in Lebanon has its origins dating back to the late 70s through early 90s. However, it was only recently that this issue gained widespread attention when the economy experienced a catastrophic crash in 2019 and several industries collapsed one after another. The Lebanese economy suffered greatly from these events and is still grappling with recovery efforts today.
Criticism has been levied against the government for its handling of this situation - with many accusing them of not doing enough to help those who have suffered as a result. Additionally, there are concerns over transparency regarding just how severe things truly are.
Understandably, such issues have left much anger and frustration among citizens who feel abandoned by their leaders during one of their country's most trying times yet. Many now believe they've been left on their own devices without any proper support or guidance whatsoever...
High Unemployment Rates.
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In 2021, the youth unemployment rate was 29.60%. This is the highest it has been for ages. Many people are struggling to find jobs.
The high unemployment rates are having a ripple effect on the economy. Consumer spending is down because people don't have money to spend [0]. This is causing businesses to cut back on production and layoffs. The result is a vicious cycle that is only deepening the financial crisis.
The issue of high unemployment rates demands immediate attention. However, one may wonder what measures can be taken to tackle this problem effectively. One viable solution is extending financial aid to businesses for the purpose of sustaining or generating employment opportunities. Additionally, investing in training and educational programs could equip individuals with skills that are highly sought after by employers thus increasing their chances of finding gainful employment. By implementing these strategies we can alleviate the negative impact caused by economic downturns and steer our economy towards recovery.
It's evident that high unemployment rates have far-reaching consequences beyond just monetary losses; it also affects people on a personal level as they struggle financially due to lack of employment opportunities. It's crucially important for us all collectively take action before things get worse and more lives are affected negatively because of this problem at hand.
Deep Poverty.
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The Lebanese crisis has been raging for over three years, showing no signs of abating. The crisis has devastated the country's economy, with the Lebanese pound losing over 90% of its value since 2019. This has led to widespread poverty, with over 80% of Lebanese living below the poverty line [1].
The current state of the crisis in Lebanon has resulted in a notable escalation in the prices of vital goods and services, coupled with a reduction in job prospects. As a result, households are grappling to make ends meet which is compelling them to turn to local as well as international aid groups for help. This predicament is causing widespread distress among numerous families throughout the nation.
The crisis has also caused a major decline in GDP, with GDP per capita dropping 37.1% between 2018 and 2021 [2]. This has had a devastating impact on the Lebanese population. As the crisis continues, the situation is only likely to worsen, with more Lebanese people living in poverty and struggling to meet their basic needs.
The situation in Lebanon profoundly impacts ordinary Lebanese lives. The crisis needs to be brought to an end as soon as possible so that people can start to rebuild their lives.
Hyperinflation.
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The official rate of the Lebanese pound is about 1,507.50 to the dollar, but the actual street value is way lower. The unofficial exchange rate has climbed from 1,507 to almost 100,000 in 2023, meaning that daily grocery bills can now equal a month's worth of income for a typical family, leaving many Lebanese struggling to make ends meet.
Despite the Lebanese government's efforts to halt devaluation by increasing cash supply, it has resulted in a surge in inflation. The cost of living is skyrocketing at an alarming rate while salaries remain stagnant, and there seems to be no resolution in sight for this ongoing crisis.
The Lebanese people are suffering immensely due to the devaluation of their currency. Many are going hungry or are forced to live in abject poverty. We can only hope the situation improves soon for the sake of all those affected.
Basic Medicines Are Unavailable.
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As per the World Health Organization (WHO), it has been approximated that a mere fraction of healthcare facilities in Beirut, which is Lebanon's capital city, are operational at present [3]. This implies that access to basic medical care is severely restricted for Lebanese citizens. Furthermore, numerous crucial medications remain unavailable within the nation as well [4].
The health of the Lebanese people is being severely affected due to their inability to access basic medical care and essential medicines. This crisis demands urgent attention, as it poses a great threat to the wellbeing of individuals in Lebanon. I strongly appeal for all parties involved in this conflict to permit humanitarian organizations such as UNICEF and UNESCO unrestricted entry into areas where assistance is required, enabling them with necessary resources including vital medical supplies that can make an immense difference during these trying times.
The Majority Of Homes Lack Electricity.
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Most homes in Lebanon lack electricity; this led to the price of solar panels skyrocketing [5], making them unaffordable for many citizens. The Lebanese government has been struggling to provide basic services, let alone power, to its citizens since the start of the crisis. This has resulted in a black market for solar panels, with prices soaring as demand outstrips supply.
The lack of electricity has devastatingly impacted everyday life in Lebanon. Hospitals are struggling to function without power [6].
The Lebanese government has responded by rationing power, fuel [7]; but the blackouts have nonetheless left many businesses and households in the dark. The crisis has also caused a spike in generators and other backup power prices, as well as a run on batteries and candles.
It's been a difficult adjustment for everyone, but we, the Lebanese people, are known for our resilience [8]. Hopefully, the country will be able to weather this storm and come out stronger on the other side.
Conclusion
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As citizens of Lebanon, we are currently facing a critical moment that threatens our very existence. To truly comprehend the essence of this nation, one must delve into the intricacies and complexities of our daily lives. By gaining insight into our individual battles and hardships, you can gain an understanding of what makes up this country as a whole. Peace!
Cover Image by Alexa from Pixabay
References.
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[0] Unicef. When we have money, we buy what we need. If we don’t have money, we don’t eat.. unicef.org. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[1] thenationalnews. Almost 80% of Lebanese living in poverty, UN study reveals.. thenationalnews.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[2] worldbank. Lebanon's Economic Update — October 2021.. worldbank.org. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[3] france24. Many of Beirut's hospitals 'non-functional' following deadly blast, WHO warns.. france24.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[4] thenationalnews. Lebanon to run out of hundreds of medicines by the end of July.. thenationalnews.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[5] aljazeera. Solar ‘boom’ times as Lebanon’s fossil fuels run dry.. aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[6] vanguardngr. Fuel shortage throws Lebanon’s hospitals in crisis.. vanguardngr.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[7] transparency-lebanon. Transparency in Lebanon’s Power Sector.. transparency-lebanon.org. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
[8] atiejelmouallem. Lebanon’s Long History with Resilience.. atiejelmouallem.com. Retrieved 2022-09-08.
Top comments (14)
As a programmer, you are too good in human language. I like how you sent clear and structured message. The crisis you shared here is similar to Venezuela. I had an impulse to start a web project last time when I heard from a friend. I may have a naive thinking that as web developer, we can make an impact or make a difference for the world.
economy crisis. I think many countries are experiencing it since pandemic, Lebanese situation is as bad as Venezuelan. I ever heard a Professor in Venezuela can't even afford a cheap smartphone. Pandemic and Ukraine-Russian war made it worse.
I do think that prolonged corruption and government officials lacking insights and competency is the main culprit for country not to flourish as they should be.(I may be wrong about it)
High unemployment rates
I think there is a change in "employment" structure since the internet and technology emerging for the last 10-15 years. Spotify democratises musicians, shopping platforms democratise merchandising, YouTube democratises movies. That's how it sparkles my mind on how to solve it.
Deep Poverty
It is harsh and cruel for survival.
If possible with the data science, what is the most available major food source which is cheap in Lebanon? is it possible to increase the production or farming? if not, are there any other alternatives? By carbohydrates, proteins, fats, water. eg. Soya beans or beans as cheaper food for cheese, eggs, meat.
In pandemic, many countries suffering from medical supplies exhausted and under supplied.(or people hoarding medical supplies) I have seen many people in telegram groups sharing on nutritional healing and all sorts of remedies.
In this highly volatile environment ever since the pandemic, I think people have learnt to be more versatile and resilient. You have impressed me as your age with such a flow of writing and high versatility of technology skills.
Thank you for your kind words and insightful thoughts, Alex. I'm glad you appreciate my thoughts on the situation. I really like how you are thinking about improving the situation. It is true that knowledge is power and I'm using it to try to make a difference in this world. I also believe that education is an important part of making a change.
As you mentioned, It's incredibly difficult to find a way out of the crisis here in Lebanon, especially when necessities like smartphones are too expensive for many people. I agree that the crisis is similar to Venezuela. The biggest difference, however, is that Venezuela has oil and Lebanon does not. This means that Venezuela can use its oil to barter with other countries for goods, whereas Lebanon cannot. This makes it even more difficult for Lebanese people to find a way out of their current predicament.
I think finding a solution will require a lot of time and effort from everyone involved. But I remain hopeful that things can improve if we work together towards a common goal. Thank you again for your thoughtful comments.
For the last part, I've been learning English for a very long time, and I think it helped me develop a better understanding of the world. I hope you stick around and continue to enjoy my work. Peace!
Key question: food will get rotten if don't get eaten or sold. Do you think there are merchants or people will donate the excess or food which is about to expire?
building a simple platform for people to share resources and for people in need to pick up I think is possible. Why not starting from your hometown?
I have few suggestions here:
food sources sharing: during pandemic, Thai people put a food sharing cupboard in a spot that people who are really in need can take. Like canned food, flour, oil, cookies, bread. Of course, it really needs people really be considerate and take what it is enough for their needs. Another way: some shops/merchants with good credits can donate some canned food or food within 1-3months about to expire. And it is possible to put an app in Lebanon nationwide for all participating merchants, we can put in our websites to promote their merchants or shops for the good deeds they have done. I have this in mind when my country was in very bad situation. Now My country situation become better. I don't think this proposal is in need. And I am still learning for backend. If you want, I will write a workflow proposal and see what we can do about it. The fact is it can work as country basis to resolve the current situation for everyone in the world. Are you interested?
With your data science knowledge, we can find out what is the current food source Lebanese is having. What other alternatives can lower the cost or is it other ways to make dishes or food to last longer?
the high unemployment rates: I thought about a website allows anyone(for people in Lebanon even a housewife can be a content contributor) can share any great tips/life hacks/recipes(anything they are good at) on anything. Then anyone can tip them with the great ideas they share. It can be a recipe, good idea in saving money, or anything. The issue is we need to set up for people like Lebanese, Venezuelans can easily cash out the tip or can even use the credit to exchange for food and other necessity. Similar to BAT(Brave Attention Token concept)
What do you think ?
The same thing has happened in Sri Lanka (and for instance - to a certain degree - in Argentina, and in Venezuela, although that's a bit of a different situation, as there's a heavy political-ideological component there, in the form of marxism).
The root cause, at least in the case of Sri Lanka and Lebanon: mismanagement of the economy by the government!
Too much reliance on a few sectors (tourism for Sri Lanka, the banking sector for Lebanon), with insufficient productivity and output in other sectors (e.g. agriculture, food production) - and the consequence is that most of the things people need to stay alive (energy, fuel, food, medicine) has to be imported, which results in a huge trade deficit - which gets financed by borrowing money.
This of course means living on a volcano - once the "rest of the world" starts losing faith in a country's economy, they will stop lending, or will only do so at huge interest rates, and that's the beginning of the end - imports can't be financed anymore, which means empty shelves in the supermarkets, no fuel in the gas stations, no electricity from your wall socket (because the country can't pay for the fuel needed to run the power plants), no medicine in the hospitals, and so on.
For both Lebanon and Sri Lanka, the blame should be put squarely and exclusively in only one place: the politicians and the government! It's their incompetence and lack of responsibility that has made people suffer.
This goes to show how, in our highly sophisticated industrialized economies, our lives and wellbeing are hanging by a very thin thread - no matter how talented and hard working you are, your life can be ruined by an incompetent government, and there's very little you can do about it.
only the people can save themselves. The value of currency holds in the minds of people. when people think/believe you worth something, that's when they will invest in you.
No it's not "the people" who screwed up in those two countries that I mentioned - it's the folks at the top, the powers that be, the people in government, who gambled with the economy and the future of their countries - by wasting tax payers' money on dumb projects, by stuffing their own pockets, by borrowing too much, by not making sure there are productive industries to EARN the hard currencies to finance the imports.
All of that is "structural" and engrained in the 'system' - there's only so much (well very little, actually) that an individual can do. Economy crashes, then all the little puppets go with it and get buried in that "avalanche", that would apply to you and me as well if we'd be living there.
Big misunderstanding that the fault lies with the local population in those countries. Or maybe that's not what you were trying to say, but then again I'm not really sure what you were trying to say.
My ‘people’ = civilians, not gov.
That's what I thought - so why, do you think, are countries like Lebanon and Sri Lanka bankrupt, and are people (= "civilians") suffering - what's the ultimate root cause?
The root cause is mismanagement - it's the governments in those countries who destroyed the economy, screwed "the people" over, and made them suffer ... it's not the fault of "the people", people are just at the mercy of their governments' incompetent policies, which ruined their countries and their lives.
Yes, for now all "the people" can do is be inventive and resilient and survive from day to day, but in the end the only real solution is to oust the corrupt and incompetent politicians, and get better ones.
The reason why Lebanon and Sri Lanka are bankrupt is because of mismanagement of the economy, so that's ultimately what you need to fix.
That’s a very intriguing question you asked. I think we may need a long chat.
I wonder if I should “vandalise” on Mahmoud Harmouch’s post, or “vandalise” on my own space.
Let me simply put it:
What makes a normal soccer ball worth more with Messi’s signature?
Let’s imagine we all go back to basic, going back to ancient time:
We use things for things as trade off, no currency. Plain and simple. You and I agreed on exchange of a cow for a house. Then it comes currency, to make it easier for calculation of value. Let’s single out Lebanon(or any country in the world), when you only stay in your own country with your own currency to trade. No problem when your country is self-sufficed.
“It's a lazy day in a hot town. The sun is high, the streets are deserted, and everyone is in debt and living on credit.
At this time, a rich tourist came from other places. He entered a hotel, took out a 1,000 dollars bill and put it on the counter, saying that he wanted to look at the rooms first and choose a suitable one for overnight stay.
Just as the man went upstairs, the shopkeeper grabbed the 1,000 dollars note and ran to the butcher next door to pay the meat money he owed.
With 1,000 dollars note, the butcher crossed the road and paid off the farmer's cost.
The farmer took 1,000 dollars note and went out to pay the feed he owed.
The man who sold the feed got 1,000 dollars note and hurried to pay off the money he hired for prostitutes (the economy is not good, and the local service industry has to provide credit services).
With 1,000 dollars note, the prostitute rushed to the hotel to pay what she owed for the room.
The hotel owner hurriedly put the 1,000 dollars note on the counter to avoid suspicious passengers when they went downstairs.
At this time the man was coming downstairs, picked up 1000 dollars note, claimed that none of the rooms were satisfactory, he pocketed the money, and left...
On this day, no one produced anything, and no one got anything, but the debts of the whole town were cleared, and everyone was very happy...
What does this story tell us? Cash needs to be in circulation to generate value! And there will always be hype in the economy!”
I read about this story couples of years ago. It is a good story on 1000 dollars note passing around 6 times with the value created 6000.
Similarly, I suggest for current situation in Lebanon, people can use their own value to trade(things for similar value) among themselves to keep country people to survive.
Nice story, but a pyramid scheme will not last forever - ultimately real value (goods or services) will need to be produced by real people, it's the only source of "wealth". Apart from that, still not sure what you're trying to say, OTOH my analysis was simple & crystal clear.
the story was not a pyramid scheme. it is real goods and services.
Okay, I reread the story, and of course there is a logical "hole" in it the size of the Mount Everest - I had some mental fog that prevented me from seeing it, but it's simple:
"With 1,000 dollars note, the prostitute rushed to the hotel to pay what she owed for the room.
The hotel owner hurriedly put the 1,000 dollars note on the counter to avoid suspicious passengers when they went downstairs."
So, the prostitute paid the hotel owner 1000 dollars that she owned him. Hotel owner hurriedly put it on the counter, and the rich man picked it up and went off.
The simple conclusion - the hotel owner LOST 1000 dollars revenue, which he'll never get back, because he forfeited the debt that the prostitute had with him - the hotel owner simply paid the debts of that town, from his own pocket, he became 1000 dollars poorer than he was.
No magic here at all, nothing "deep" - LOL !
(oh and on top of that the rich man had his hotel room for free, so the hotel owner got doubly screwed, but that's an inconsequential detail really)
I like an amusing anecdote as much as anyone, but the story falls flat, hence it proves nothing.
" 1000 dollars note passing around 6 times with the value created 6000" - nope, no "6000 value" was created, at all - it's a chain with the 1000 being passed on, which goes for the initial debts, and then for the paying off of the debts. The initial debts were also from A to B to C and so on. At most 1000 was "created" but not even that - see above.
Oh, and regarding:
"People can use their own value to trade(things for similar value) among themselves to keep country people to survive"
Yeah sure, that will work if you're prepared to live like a caveman, grow food, trade it with your neigbor and that's it. Say goodbye to electricity, transportation, healthcare, any form of technology - because you cannot possibly be self-sufficient with ALL of that as a country, let alone as an individual.
I'm glad that you're not the minister of economic affairs in my country, or an adviser with any sort of influence, lol.