Advancing Evidence-Based Policy in Crisis Management: The Case of Lebanon

This study offers an evidence-based assessment of the cross-sectoral effects of Lebanon’s protracted economic crisis on the employment, incomes, energy poverty, livelihood and food-based coping strategies, and attitudes towards immigration in seven economic sectors. The study’s findings are based on the field survey responses of 931 households earning a livelihood from the agriculture, construction, education, food and beverage, health, manufacturing, and retail sectors drawn from all of Lebanon’s governorates. The statistical analysis is complemented, sharpened, and enhanced using the input of high-profile experts who participated in five group Key Informant Interviews. The findings suggest that Lebanon’s economic crisis had pervasive and profound effects on the livelihoods and employment conditions of the respondents across the seven sectors. First, the findings bring to light the extreme energy burden that households face amid the severe rationing of the power supply. More than two thirds of households, across the seven sectors, spend more than 50 percent of their income on energy. The findings also uncover the harsh livelihood and food-based coping strategies that were adopted by the respondents. The bulk of households across the seven sectors have reduced the quantity of basic food staples such milk, fruits, vegetables, and bread and switched to cheaper alternatives for basic food items. In addition, with the exception of respondents from the manufacturing and food and beverage sectors, 30 percent or more of the respondents across sectors report having to skip a meal during the week, while 32.87 percent of the households across sectors are not able to afford a meal with chicken, fish or meat at least once a week

Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon: Phase Two Key Informant Interviews Report of Findings

The project aims to ensure greater accountability and transparency of humanitarian aid and reconstructions efforts, particularly for those most affected by the Beirut port explosion. It will do so by better equipping local civil society and journalist networks in their roles as watchdogs, by supporting state actors to improve government reforms and manage crisis in transparency, and by equipping citizens to monitor and report corruption, particularly in areas of Beirut most affected by the explosion. Several recent reports and documentaries have questioned the transparency and accountability of international assistance related to the Port of Beirut (PoB) explosion. There are claims that millions of dollars have been misused or wasted to corruption. “Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon (EARREL)” intends to fill this information gap. EARREL is led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) and funded by Transparency International. This report builds on an exhaustive literature review conducted by the team as well as a data collection exercise that included (1) field surveys of 650 aid beneficiaries in the PoB area, and (2) Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with 50 experts in the field

For Inclusive and Fair Covid-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon: Key Informant Interviews Report of Findings

In many countries, early, large, and sustained policy responses to the pandemic were successful in protecting families. However, the Government of Lebanon’s (GoL) response to COVID-19 and the simultaneous crises the country is experiencing, in terms of socio-economic recovery measures, has been very limited if not absent. This research aims to analyze the impact of the lack of government actions and policies on the urban informal labor sector in Lebanon. The informal sector, which makes up a significant portion of the Lebanese economy (estimated to be at least 30% of GDP), is of interest to us as very few of the measures taken by GoL such as tax grace periods, were targeted at the formal sector. Led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and funded by Oxfam, the project “For Inclusive and Fair Covid-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon,” aims to assess the GoL decisions related to the pandemic and to influence the orientation of government decisions such that they take into consideration the impact on the most vulnerable population groups, especially those working in the informal sector

Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon: Synthesis Report

The project aims to ensure greater accountability and transparency of humanitarian aid and reconstructions efforts, particularly for those most affected by the Beirut port explosion. It will do so by better equipping local civil society and journalist networks in their roles as watchdogs, by supporting state actors to improve government reforms and manage crisis in transparency, and by equipping citizens to monitor and report corruption, particularly in areas of Beirut most affected by the explosion. Several recent reports and documentaries have questioned the transparency and accountability of international assistance related to the Port of Beirut (PoB) explosion. There are claims that millions of dollars have been misused or wasted to corruption. “Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon (EARREL)” intends to fill this information gap. EARREL is led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) and funded by Transparency International. This report builds on an exhaustive literature review conducted by the team as well as a data collection exercise that included (1) field surveys of 250 aid beneficiaries in the PoB area, and (2) Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with 25 experts in the field

For Inclusive and Fair Covid-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon: Synthesis Report

In many countries, early, large, and sustained policy responses to the pandemic were successful in protecting families. However, the Government of Lebanon’s response to COVID-19 and the simultaneous crises the country is experiencing, in terms of socio-economic recovery measures has been very limited, if not absent. Led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and supported by Oxfam, the project “For Inclusive and Fair COVID-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon,” investigates the impact of the pandemic and concurring crises on the employment and living conditions of the urban informal sector in Lebanon. The informal sector makes up a significant portion of the Lebanese economy (54% of the labor force before the start of the crisis). Furthermore, the project evaluates the government’s response to both the health and economic challenges posed by the crises. The field work shows that the pandemic led to significant loss of employment and income among the population of interest. Household living conditions deteriorated drastically, leading the majority of households to resort to negative coping mechanisms. Government intervention was limited in scope and impact and failed to alleviate the daily hardships faced by the vulnerable population. Finally, we conclude with a series of short- and long-term policy recommendations that build on the evidence provided in this research work as well as lessons learned

Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon: Key Informant Interviews Report of Findings

The project aims to ensure greater accountability and transparency of humanitarian aid and reconstructions efforts, particularly for those most affected by the Beirut port explosion. It will do so by better equipping local civil society and journalist networks in their roles as watchdogs, by supporting state actors to improve government reforms and manage crisis in transparency, and by equipping citizens to monitor and report corruption, particularly in areas of Beirut most affected by the explosion. Several recent reports and documentaries have questioned the transparency and accountability of international assistance related to the Port of Beirut (PoB) explosion. There are claims that millions of dollars have been misused or wasted to corruption. “Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon (EARREL)” intends to fill this information gap. EARREL is led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) and funded by Transparency International. This report builds on an exhaustive literature review conducted by the team as well as a data collection exercise that included (1) field surveys of 250 aid beneficiaries in the PoB area, and (2) Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with 25 experts in the field

Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon: Phase Two Field Survey Findings Report

The project aims to ensure greater accountability and transparency of humanitarian aid and reconstructions efforts, particularly for those most affected by the Beirut port explosion. It will do so by better equipping local civil society and journalist networks in their roles as watchdogs, by supporting state actors to improve government reforms and manage crisis in transparency, and by equipping citizens to monitor and report corruption, particularly in areas of Beirut most affected by the explosion. Several recent reports and documentaries have questioned the transparency and accountability of international assistance related to the Port of Beirut (PoB) explosion. There are claims that millions of dollars have been misused or wasted to corruption. “Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon (EARREL)” intends to fill this information gap. EARREL is led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) and funded by Transparency International. This report builds on an exhaustive literature review conducted by the team as well as a data collection exercise that included (1) field surveys of 650 aid beneficiaries in the PoB area, and (2) Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with 50 experts in the field

For Inclusive and Fair COVID-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon: Focus Group Discussions Report of Findings

In many countries, early, large, and sustained policy responses to the pandemic were successful in protecting families. However, the Government of Lebanon’s (GoL) response to COVID-19 and the simultaneous crises the country is experiencing, in terms of socio-economic recovery measures has been very limited if not absent. This research work aims to analyze the impact of the lack of government actions and policies on the urban informal sector in Lebanon. The informal sector, which makes up a significant portion of the Lebanese economy (estimated to be at least 30% of GDP), is of interest to us as the very few measures taken by GoL such as tax grace periods were targeted at the formal sector. Led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and funded by Oxfam, the project “For Inclusive and Fair COVID-19 Socio-Economic Recovery Measures in Lebanon,” aims to assess the GoL decisions related to the pandemic and to influence the orientation of government decisions such that they take into consideration the impact on the most vulnerable population groups, especially those working in the informal sector

Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon: Field Survey Findings Report

The project aims to ensure greater accountability and transparency of humanitarian aid and reconstructions efforts, particularly for those most affected by the Beirut port explosion. It will do so by better equipping local civil society and journalist networks in their roles as watchdogs, by supporting state actors to improve government reforms and manage crisis in transparency, and by equipping citizens to monitor and report corruption, particularly in areas of Beirut most affected by the explosion. Several recent reports and documentaries have questioned the transparency and accountability of international assistance related to the Port of Beirut (PoB) explosion. There are claims that millions of dollars have been misused or wasted to corruption. “Ensuring Accountability in Reconstruction and Reform Efforts in Lebanon (EARREL)” intends to fill this information gap. EARREL is led by the American University of Beirut (AUB) and the Lebanese Transparency Association (LTA) and funded by Transparency International. This report builds on an exhaustive literature review conducted by the team as well as a data collection exercise that included (1) field surveys of 250 aid beneficiaries in the PoB area, and (2) Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with 25 experts in the field

“Advancing Evidence-based Policy in Crisis Management: Field Survey Findings

This report presents preliminary findings from the field surveys conducted as part of the project led by AUB and funded by the National Endowment for Democracy: “Advancing Evidence-Based Policy in Crisis Management.” The project aims to monitor the impact of the multi-dimensional crises Lebanon is facing, on multiple economic sectors, and subsequently advance evidence-based policy reforms that respond to citizens’ priorities. For this purpose, the assessment carried out had two main objectives: (i) gathering information about the socio-economic impacts of the crisis, and (ii) data on coping mechanisms. This preliminary report will be followed by a more detailed final report containing analysis of qualitative and quantitative data collected through surveys and interviews. Studies have found that collecting more information (qualitative and quantitative) on households’ vulnerability to poverty could help inform policy. The final report will present a more comprehensive analysis and make some policy recommendations