BEIRUT, Lebanon Tuesday, May 10, 2022 – 100% Liban, the civil society organization committed to Lebanon’s economic recovery, and Executive Magazine, the premiere Lebanese business magazine, has conducted a focus group discussion bringing together leading economic experts to discuss Lebanon’s fiscal, monetary, and banking restructure situation.
Conducted according to Chatham House rules which guarantee confidentiality about their statements to discussants, the high-powered round of experienced economists in their first round of deliberations agreed that a fiscal restructuring of Lebanon’s state finances will have to be anchored in better collection and improved tax justice but should not resort to higher taxes. They also noted that solutions commonly recommended by the International Monetary Fund will not be applicable as generic solution but have to be contextualized to Lebanon and qualitatively upgraded.
Proceeding seamlessly to discussions of the currency crisis, the participants in their majority favored a free-float shock and market alignment of the Lebanese pound while the majority rejected the solution of a currency board as not currently feasible. The topic of a dollarization solution was mentioned as hard peg alternative to the free float but not examined in further detail.
A good bank – bad bank segregation of banking risks and isolation of toxic assets was elaborated on in the third part of the deliberations, with participants emphasizing that the restructuring of the banking sector requires a fair attribution of responsibilities to the main actors in the banking fiasco, namely the Lebanese government, the central bank, and the commercial banks, but also must not absolve the citizens of their role in the build-up of the banking crisis.
The half-day event, which was held at 100% Liban’s headquarters in Sin el Fil, delved into policy priorities from Executive’s Economic Roadmap, the magazine’s collaborative and consultative iteration of until today five annual editions of possible constructive solutions that would help the country boost its economic activity as well as improve its capacity to create short and long-term growth.
Participants highlighted the importance of reclaiming Lebanon’s position within the regional and global economic landscape, emphasizing a necessity to foster a healthy and stable environment attracting local and foreign investments into various industries of the country.
The focus group reiterated the vital role the private sector must play in rebuilding Lebanon’s economy, done through a commitment to transparency and integrity while placing the interests of the country at the forefront of the plan.