Guide to Lebanon Introduction Background: Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions since 1991 and the end of the devastating 15-year civil war. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese have established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater say in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, the Lebanese have conducted several successful elections, most of the militias have been weakened or disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended central government authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, a radical Shia organization, retains its weapons. 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. Damascus justified its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing Beirut's requests and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000, however, encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The passage of UNSCR 1559 in early October 2004 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs - further emboldened Lebanese groups opposed to Syria's presence in Lebanon. Syria finally withdrew the remainder of its forces from Lebanon in April of 2005.
Geography Location: Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Israel and Syria
Geographic coordinates: 33 50 N, 35 50 E
Map references: Middle East
Area: total
Area - comparative: about 0.7 times the size of Connecticut
Land boundaries: total
Coastline: 225 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea
Climate: Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows
Terrain: narrow coastal plain; El Beqaa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains
Elevation extremes: lowest point
Natural resources: limestone, iron ore, salt, water-surplus state in a water-deficit region, arable land
Land use: arable land
Irrigated land: 1,200 sq km (1998 est.)
Natural hazards: dust storms, sandstorms
Environment - current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills
Environment - international agreements: party to
Geography - note: Nahr el Litani only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, and ethnicity
People Population: 3,826,018 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years
Median age: total
Population growth rate: 1.26% (2005 est.)
Birth rate: 18.88 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate: 6.24 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth
Infant mortality rate: total
Life expectancy at birth: total population
Total fertility rate: 1.92 children born/woman (2005 est.)
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 2,800 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 200 (2003 est.)
Nationality: noun
Ethnic groups: Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%
Religions: Muslim 59.7% (Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, Copt, Protestant), other 1.3% note
Languages: Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian
Literacy: definition
Government Country name: conventional long form
Government type: republic
Capital: Beirut
Administrative divisions: 6 governorates (mohafazat, singular - mohafazah); Beyrouth, Beqaa, Liban-Nord, Liban-Sud, Mont-Liban, Nabatiye
Independence: 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
National holiday: Independence Day, 22 November (1943)
Constitution: 23 May 1926; amended a number of times, most recently Charter of Lebanese National Reconciliation (Ta'if Accord) of October 1989
Legal system: mixture of Ottoman law, canon law, Napoleonic code, and civil law; no judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education
Executive branch: chief of state
Legislative branch: 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
Judicial branch: 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)
Political parties and leaders: Ba'th Party [leader NA]; Democratic Gathering [Walid JUNBLATT]; Democratic Left [leader NA]; Development and Resistance Bloc [Nabih BARRI, Amal leader/speaker]; Free Patriotic Movement [Michel AWN]; Future Movement Bloc [Sa'ad HARIRI]; Kataeb Party [leader NA]; Kataeb Reform Movement [leader NA]; Lebanese Forces [leader NA]; Loyalty to the Resistance [Mohammad RA'AD]; Nasserite Popular Movement [leader NA]; Popular Bloc [leader NA]; Qornet Shewan [leader NA]; Syrian National Socialist Party [leader NA]; Tripoli Independent Bloc [leader NA]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: ABEDA, ACCT, AFESD, AMF, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission
Flag description: three horizontal bands consisting of red (top), white (middle, double width), and red (bottom) with a green cedar tree centered in the white band
Economy Economy - overview: 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. In the years since, Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In an attempt to reduce the ballooning national debt, the HARIRI government began an austerity program, reining in government expenditures, increasing revenue collection, and privatizing state enterprises. In November 2002, the government met with international donors at the Paris II conference to seek bilateral assistance in restructuring its massive domestic debt at lower rates of interest. Substantial receipts from donor nations stabilized government finances in 2003, but did little to reduce the debt, which stood at nearly 180% of GDP. In 2004 the HARIRI government issued Eurobonds in an effort to manage maturing debt, and the KARAMI government has continued this practice. However, privatization of state-owned enterprises had not occurred by the end of 2004, as promised during the Paris II conference.
GDP (purchasing power parity): $18.83 billion (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $5,000 (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture
Labor force: 2.6 million note
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture NA, industry NA, services NA
Unemployment rate: 18% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: 28% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (2004 est.)
Investment (gross fixed): 26% of GDP (2004 est.)
Budget: revenues
Public debt: 177.9% of GDP (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products: citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats
Industries: banking, food processing, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating
Industrial production growth rate: NA
Electricity - production: 8.066 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel
Electricity - consumption: 8.591 billion kWh (2002)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)
Electricity - imports: 1.09 billion kWh (2002)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - consumption: 107,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)
Oil - exports: NA
Oil - imports: NA
Current account balance: $-2.389 billion (2004 est.)
Exports: $1.783 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities: authentic jewelry, inorganic chemicals, miscellaneous consumer goods, fruit, tobacco, construction minerals, electric power machinery and switchgear, textile fibers, paper
Exports - partners: Syria 24.9%, UAE 10%, Turkey 6.9%, Switzerland 6.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.3% (2004)
Imports: $8.162 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities: petroleum products, cars, medicinal products, clothing, meat and live animals, consumer goods, paper, textile fabrics, tobacco
Imports - partners: Italy 11.2%, France 10.3%, Syria 9.8%, Germany 8.6%, China 5.8%, US 5.5%, UK 4.6% (2004)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $16.3 billion (2004 est.)
Debt - external: $15.84 billion (2004 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $2.2 billion received (2003), out of the $4.2 billion in soft loans pledged at the November 2002 Paris II Aid Conference
Currency (code): Lebanese pound (LBP)
Currency code: LBP
Exchange rates: Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2004), 1,507.5 (2003), 1,507.5 (2002), 1,507.5 (2001), 1,507.5 (2000)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications Telephones - main lines in use: 678,800 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 775,100 (2002)
Telephone system: general assessment
Radio broadcast stations: AM 20, FM 22, shortwave 4 (1998)
Radios: 2.85 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 15 (plus 5 repeaters) (1995)
Televisions: 1.18 million (1997)
Internet country code: .lb
Internet hosts: 6,998 (2004)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 22 (2000)
Internet users: 400,000 (2002)
Transportation Railways: total
Highways: total
Pipelines: oil 209 km (2004)
Ports and harbors: Beirut, Chekka, Jounie, Tripoli
Merchant marine: total
Airports: 8 (2004 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total
Airports - with unpaved runways: total
Military Military branches: Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF)
Military service age and obligation: 18-30 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 12 months (2004)
Manpower available for military service: males age 18-49
Manpower fit for military service: males age 18-49
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $540.6 million (2002) (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 3.1% (FY99) (2004)
Transnational Issues Disputes - international: intense international pressure prompts the removal of Syrian troops and intelligence personnel from Lebanon; Lebanese Government claims Shab'a Farms area of Israeli-occupied Golan Heights; the roughly 2,000-strong UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) has been in place since 1978
Refugees and internally displaced persons: refugees (country of origin)
Illicit drugs: cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption
Last updated: 20 October, 2005
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