meed-logo

line1 line2 line3
SIGN IN / REGISTER

Political deadlock in Lebanon blocks reforms

5 June 2023

 

Lebanon’s political deadlock is likely to continue to weigh on the country’s economy and undermine security over the medium term, according to experts.

The country currently has an interim government and has been without a president since former President Michel Aoun’s term ended at the end of October last year.

Progress towards forming a new government is likely to be slow, with the legislature divided over who should replace Aoun as president.

In March, the Iran-backed Hezbollah group and House Speaker Nabih Berri’s Amal Movement party – which together constitute Lebanon’s Shia base – announced their support for the Christian politician Sleiman Frangieh.

Hezbollah and its allies have since tried to gather support for Frangieh as president, but strong opposition from the majority of the country’s Christian, Sunni and Druze political blocs has left him short of the 65 votes required to be elected in the 128-member legislature.

Over recent weeks, members of Lebanon’s parliament that oppose Frangieh have started to rally around the former finance minister Jihad Azour.

Azour currently serves as the director of the Middle East and Central Asia Department at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

As the parliament is divided, whether either candidate can obtain a majority vote remains uncertain. According to experts, even if a president is named, it will be extremely difficult for them to form a government.

Nicholas Blanford, a non-resident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Middle East programmes, says it will likely be some time before a government is formed.

“Getting a president elected is only the first step,” he said. “Once the new president is in place, there is the tricky task of forming a new government.

“As we’ve seen over the past 20 years, forming a new government can take months as people bicker and jostle for various lucrative and influential portfolios.”

Barbara Leaf, the US assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs, said on 31 May, during a Senate committee hearing, that the Biden administration was considering sanctions if a new president is not elected soon

Outside pressure

Only when a government has been formed will Lebanon be able to start initiating the series of reforms that the international community has demanded to unlock aid, grants and loans to try to put the country on the path to economic recovery.

As Lebanon’s economic crisis has worsened and the security situation has declined, increasing pressure has been applied from other countries that want to try to restore stability in the region.

Barbara Leaf, the US assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs, said on 31 May, during a Senate committee hearing, that the Biden administration was considering sanctions if a new president is not elected soon.

Separately, two members of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee called on the administration to impose sanctions on individuals involved in corruption to “make clear to Lebanon’s political class that the status quo is not acceptable”.

In a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken on 30 May, they said: “We also call on the administration to continue pressing for full accountability for the August 2020 Beirut port blast and support independent, international investigatory efforts into egregious fraud and malfeasance by the governor of Lebanon’s central bank.

They added: “We must not allow Lebanon to be held hostage by those looking to advance their own selfish interests.”

French crackdown

French officials have also taken action to try to crack down on perceived corruption by members of Lebanon’s political elite.

In May, French prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for Lebanon’s central bank governor, Riad Salameh.

The warrant followed Salameh’s failure to appear before French prosecutors to be questioned on corruption charges.

In response, Salameh issued a statement saying that the arrest warrant violated the law.

Salameh has been the target of a series of judicial investigations at home and abroad on allegations that include fraud, money laundering and illicit enrichment.

European investigators looking into the fortune he has amassed during three decades in the job had scheduled a hearing in Paris for 16 May.

A key problem is you still have the same cabal of oligarchs in power and it is likely they will still be represented in the next government
Nicholas Blanford, Atlantic Council’s Middle East programmes

Breaking the deadlock

Analysts believe cracking down on corruption among Lebanon’s political elite is key to breaking the country’s political deadlock.

“A key problem is that you still have the same cabal of oligarchs in power and it is likely that they will still be represented in the next government,” said Blanford. “These oligarchs do not want reform because if they implement a meaningful reform process, they run the risk of losing their positions of power.”

While the country’s opposing political blocs continue to vie for power and the formation of a new government seemingly remains only possible after at least several months of negotiations, the outlook for Lebanon in the short term looks bleak.

Meaningful government assistance for Lebanese citizens struggling with declining security and heightened economic pressures remains a distant prospect. High levels of emigration are also likely to continue as the country’s population seeks relief from the hardships at home.

https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/10907713/main.gif
Wil Crisp

Register for MEED's guest program now to access this article.

Click here to register
Exclusive from Meed
Related Articles
  • Local contractor wins $143m Jeddah sewage contracts

    19 February 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabia’s National Water Company (NWC) has awarded two sewage network contracts worth a combined SR536.3m ($143m) to local contractor Civil Works Company.

    The projects will be implemented over 32 months from site handover and will serve northern Jeddah districts.

    The first contract, valued at SR278.5m ($74.3m), covers incomplete main lines and secondary sewage networks serving parts of the Al-Bashair, Al-Asala and Al-Falah neighbourhoods.

    The scope includes pipelines ranging from 200mm to 800mm in diameter with a total length of about 54.8 kilometres (km).

    The package also includes sewage tunnels with diameters ranging from 600mm to 1,800mm and a total length of approximately 6.5km. Works will also serve the Taybah, Abhar Al-Shamaliyah and Al-Hamdaniyah districts.

    The second contract is valued at SR257.8m ($68.8m). It covers the implementation of main lines and sub-networks to serve part of the Al-Hamdaniya neighbourhood.

    The works include pipelines ranging from 200mm to 1,500mm in diameter with a total length of about 78.5km. The scope also includes horizontal drilling works for sewage tunnels with diameters from 1,200mm to 1,400mm and a total length of approximately 205 metres.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15699620/main.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • Saudi Arabia prequalifies firms for gas transmission grids

    19 February 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabia's Energy Ministry has prequalified companies to develop natural gas distribution networks in five industrial cities in the kingdom on a build-own-operate (BOO) basis.

    The industrial zones earmarked are Al-Kharj Industrial City; Sudair City for Industry and Business; and the First, Second and Third Industrial Cities in Jeddah, the Energy Ministry said in a statement.

    The contractors prequalified to bid for the natural gas transmission grids BOO scheme include eight standalone firms and seven consortiums:

    • East Gas (Egypt)
    • Natural Gas Distribution Company (Saudi Arabia)
    • Egyptian Kuwaiti Advanced Operation and Maintenance (Saudi Arabia)
    • Modern Gas (Egypt)
    • Saab Energy Solutions (Saudi Arabia)
    • Sergas Contracting (Saudi Arabia)
    • Bharat Petroleum Corporation (India)
    • UniGas Arabia (Saudi Arabia)
    • Best Gas Carrier / Khazeen / Mubadra (Saudi Arabia)
    • Al Sharif Contracting (Saudi Arabia) / Anton Oilfield Services Group (China) China Oil and Gas Group
    • Hulul (owned by Saudi Arabia’s National Gas and Industrialization Company) /Al-Fanar Gas Group (UAE)
    • Indraprastha Gas (India) / Masah Contracting (Saudi Arabia)
    • Expertise Contracting / PGL Pipelines (UK)
    • National Gas Company (Egypt) / Egypt Gas (Egypt)
    • Taqa Arabia (Egypt) / Taqa Group (UAE)

    The Energy Ministry has set a deadline of 23 April for these prequalified contractors to submit technical bids.

    The ministry added in its statement that it has identified a total of 36 industrial cities in Saudi Arabia for gas infrastructure development.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15699582/main0334.png
    Indrajit Sen
  • Veolia wins Jordan water services contract

    18 February 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    France's Veolia has signed a four-year performance-based management contract with the Water Authority of Jordan to support water and wastewater services in the country’s northern governorates.

    Under the contract, Veolia will provide operations, maintenance and management services to Yarmouk Water Company, the public utility responsible for water supply and wastewater services in the region.

    The agreement covers Irbid, Jerash, Ajloun and Mafraq, an area spanning nearly 30,000 square kilometres and covering about 3 million people.

    The scope includes water and wastewater operations, maintenance, billing and collection, and customer service.

    According to the firm, the performance-based structure prioritises measurable improvements, including service delivery, cost efficiency and revenue management.

    The company said it will deploy technical and management specialists to support operations, rehabilitation works and investment initiatives.

    The contract builds on Veolia’s existing operational role in Jordan’s water sector. The company operates the Disi-Amman scheme, which supplies about 100 million cubic metres of drinking water a year, under an operations and maintenance contract.

    It also operates the Al-Samra wastewater treatment plant, which produces about 133 million cubic metres of treated wastewater annually for agricultural reuse.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15684109/main0535.jpg
    Mark Dowdall
  • SAR tenders phosphate rail project management deal

    18 February 2026

     

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabian Railways (SAR) has floated another tender inviting firms to bid for a contract covering the project management consultancy services for its Phosphate 3 rail programme.

    The tender was issued on 15 February with a bid submission deadline of 5 April.

    The contract duration is 54 months.

    The latest tender follows SAR floating a multibillion-riyal tender to double the tracks on the existing phosphate transport railway network connecting the Waad Al-Shamal mines to Ras Al-Khair in the kingdom’s Eastern Province.

    The tender – covering the second section of the track-doubling works, spanning more than 150 kilometres (km) – was issued on 9 February. The bid submission deadline is 15 April.

    Earlier this month, MEED reported that SAR received bids from contractors on 1 February for the project’s first phase, which spans about 100km from the AZ1/Nariyah Yard to Ras Al-Khair.

    The scope includes track doubling, alignment modifications, new utility bridges, culvert widening and hydrological structures, as well as the conversion of the AZ1 siding into a mainline track.

    The scope also covers support for signalling and telecommunications systems.

    The tender notice was issued in late November with a bid submission deadline of 20 January.

    Switzerland-based engineering firm ARX is the project consultant.

    MEED understands that SAR is expected to tender a total of four packages for the phosphate railway line.

    The other packages expected to be tendered shortly include the depot and the systems package.

    In 2023, MEED reported that SAR was planning two projects to increase its freight capacity, including an estimated SR4.2bn ($1.1bn) project to install a second track along the North Train freight line and construct three new freight yards.

    Formerly known as the North-South Railway, the North Train is a 1,550km-long freight line running from the phosphate and bauxite mines in the far north of the kingdom to the Al-Baithah junction. There, it diverges into a line southwards to Riyadh and a second line running east to downstream fertiliser production and alumina refining facilities at Ras Al-Khair on the Gulf coast.

    Adding a second track and the freight yards will significantly increase the network’s cargo-carrying capacity and facilitate increased industrial production. Project implementation is expected to take four years.

    State-owned SAR is also considering increasing the localisation of railway materials and equipment, including the construction of a cement sleeper manufacturing facility.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15684025/main.jpg
    Yasir Iqbal
  • PIF-backed firm signs worker accommodation deal

    17 February 2026

    Register for MEED’s 14-day trial access 

    Saudi Arabia's Smart Accommodation for Residential Complexes Company (Sarcc) has signed an agreement with Riyadh-based Mawref Company to develop a 12,000-bed worker accommodation project in North Riyadh.

    The project will cover about 120,000 square metres (sq m), with a total built-up area of 150,000 sq m.

    The development is expected to cost over SR669m ($178m), with the first phase slated for completion in 2029.

    Sarcc is backed by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), the Saudi sovereign wealth vehicle.

    The agreement follows Sarcc signing another agreement in September last year with privately-owned local firm Tamimi Global Company to explore collaboration in developing worker accommodation facilities in the kingdom.

    The PIF launched Sarcc in October 2024 with the aim of developing and operating staff housing and accommodation assets in the kingdom.

    Sarcc will develop and operate the staff accommodation facilities at major construction projects in Saudi Arabia.

    The company will seek opportunities to invest in the sector to strengthen staff housing standards. Sarcc will also look to engage the private sector by enabling investment and partnership opportunities in sectors including construction, catering, transportation and retail.

    https://image.digitalinsightresearch.in/uploads/NewsArticle/15672262/main.gif
    Yasir Iqbal