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Taxation’s redistribution effect
Alain Bifani, director general of Lebanon’s finance ministry, tells Executive that newly enacted taxation will shore up revenue in the public coffer. During an interview at the end of August (before...
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Bhamdoun’s tourism wasteland
It is a depressing sight: closed shops, empty restaurants, and abandoned hotels. Bhamdoun’s main street, once the glittering gem of Lebanon’s golden age, betrays nothing of its polished upscale past....
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The anti-establishment
As a nation, Lebanon was doomed from the start. This is the unifying theme of the mainstream anti-establishment message. The country’s sectarian power-sharing arrangement spawned a cancer that...
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Program for a nation or national myth?
The egg as symbol of rebirth is powerful. It can inspire. In the case of Lebanon, the egg is more than a representation of fertility because it plays into the enduring myth that the constituents of...
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All the makings of
It is common to associate wealth management with private banks, family offices, brokers, asset managers, and other financial intermediaries. But the structuring and transmission of wealth also touches...
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Rural entreprise
“Agriculture at the National Museum? No, we don’t have anything about that here.” The answer was definitive. I was visiting the museum in search of traces inscribed in stone or clay of the...
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Talking about wealth
Wealth is a contentious issue when seen through the lens of social improvement. Viewed from the position of social equality, it is a recipe for dissatisfaction and, sometimes, disaster. How does a...
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Finally, some clarity
After deliberating for much of 2017, Parliament met in late July to ratify new taxes. The legislation then sat on the desk of President of the Republic Michel Aoun for nearly a month, while he...
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Myopic taxation
The package of tax measures recently signed into law and published in the Official Gazette was characterized by a lack of any fiscal and economic vision. It does not proceed from a well-designed tax...
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Salary adjustment
So much has been said about the salary adjustment. While many people are opposed to it over the perception that it imposes higher taxes, public sector employees and teachers think that an adjustment is...
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Going shades of green
Lebanon could license the construction of nearly 380 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy plants as early as this summer, a Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW) official tells Executive. This would mean a...
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Inching closer to the edge of our seats
Regardless of what local banks keep proclaiming, Lebanon has no oil or gas. There’s reason to believe it does, but the process of finding out is only just beginning. On September 15, companies will bid...
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Strengthen our environmental protections
As Lebanon gears up to explore for offshore oil and gas resources, it is critical that environmental protection is a front and center priority. Oil and gas development activities have high...
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Show me the honey
Honey might not come to mind when thinking about Lebanese food products. But Lebanon has a deeply rooted history with the gold nectar; it was even mentioned in the Old Testament. Though honey...
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Icing on the cake
It came at the last minute. For two years, the Ministry of Finance and the Lebanese Petroleum Administration (LPA) have been drafting a tax law focused specifically on the oil and gas industry. In late...
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Lebanon’s fiscal conundrum
There are two arguments being made today. Both agree the state should maximize its share of benefit, though they do not agree on what is the maximum benefit achievable. Some aim for a bid round that is...
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A partnership in risk
This summer, Lebanon ratified a new law enabling the government and private sector to share risk in investing, building, and operating infrastructure projects. The legal framework, known as a...
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A marriage of convenience
After a nearly decade-long wait, Lebanon’s legislature finally ratified a law encouraging private-sector investment in public infrastructure. The new framework for public-private partnerships (PPP)...
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May 2017
EDITORIAL The donkey strategy LEADERS Don’t sweat the details Things are moving, but too often behind closed doors COVER STORY Self absorbed Time to get back on a horse SPECIAL REPORT OIL & GAS...
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Going nowhere
The latest move to encourage the use of electric vehicles (EVs) in Arab markets came in Dubai. Last month, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority announced incentives for EVs that include exemption...
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