Lebanon faces coronavirus in the midst of economic and social crisis

Lebanon faces one of the greatest challenges in its recent history. The social malaise, the economic crisis and the refugee crisis are now compounded by the coronavirus pandemic. The spread of the pathogen in the Middle East comes at a delicate time for the country of cedars. With a public debt of 150%, one of the highest in the world, and a deficit of 11%, the State is forced to deploy its scarce resources to manage the health emergency. That is why the President, Michel Aoun, has requested this Monday international assistance in view of the lack of resources.

The president has explained that Lebanon is in a very delicate situation. "We are going through two of the worst crises to hit the world in the last 75 years," said Aoun, referring to the Syrian refugee crisis, as the vast majority have fled Syria to settle in Lebanon, and the pandemic. The president estimates that caring for the refugees has cost the country more than $25 billion and no solution is yet in sight.

The Lebanese leader recalled that the Lebanon Support Group announced at its last meeting in December 2019 in Paris the need to support the country in overcoming the economic and financial crisis once it had a government.  

Protests across the country over the economic and financial crisis led to the departure of former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, who was forced to resign in October. Hariri tried to stay in power with an ambitious plan of economic reforms, but was finally forced to resign. The head of government's exit from power failed to end the country's financial problems and the country's currency, pegged to the dollar since 1997, lost nearly 60% of its value in the following weeks.  

In addition, the financial crisis and the coronavirus have led Lebanon to default on its foreign currency debt for the first time and to begin restructuring talks at the end of March, according to Reuters. Lebanon's coronavirus blockade has compounded the wounds of a country with a weakened currency, declining reserves and rising inflation.  

The new prime minister, Hassan Diab, has promised to reform the banking sector affected by the crisis, he said on Monday at a meeting with officials from a Lebanese support group that includes the United States, Russia and France. "President Aoun and my government have decided to conduct an audit of the central bank's accounts to fulfil our promise of transparency and strengthen our negotiating position in this difficult period in Lebanon's history," Diab said.  

Experts have already warned that the country's health system will be unable to cope with the flood of contagious patients expected in the coming weeks. The World Bank has already warned, before the spread of the coronavirus, that half of Lebanon's 4.5 million people would fall below the poverty line. Similarly, it should be noted that since the start of the protests in October, more than 220,000 people have lost their jobs. 

In this scenario, even the Lebanese paramilitary group Hezbollah is mobilizing its deep resources in the fight against the coronavirus, using a corps of volunteers, doctors and facilities to play a leading role in the state's response to the crisis, according to Reuters.  

All the political parties in the country have taken to the streets to help against the coronavirus pandemic and to show that they are the ones that are most concerned with the health emergency. Analysts cited by the agency say the political elite sees an opportunity to restore the legitimacy it has lost in recent months due to massive protests against corruption and economic problems.