Map of Lebanon | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide198919901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024 | More stats

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Background: Lebanon has made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions and regaining its national sovereignty since the end of the devastating civil war which began in 1975. 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.


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Location

Geographic coordinates

Map reference

Area

Land boundaries: 454 km total; Israel 79 km, Syria 375 km

Coastline: 225 km

Maritime claims: Territorial sea:12 nm

Climate: Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, dry summers

Terrain: narrow coastal plain; Al Biqa (Bekaa Valley) separates Lebanon and Anti-Lebanon Mountains

Elevation

Natural resources: limestone, iron ore, salt; water-surplus state in a water-deficit region

Land use: 21% arable land; 9% permanent crops; 1% meadows and pastures; 8% forest and woodland; 61% other; includes 7% irrigated

Irrigated land

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards

Geography
Note: Between early 1975 and late 1976 Lebanon was torn by civil war between its Christians--then aided by Syrian troops--and its Muslims and their Palestinian allies. The cease-fire established in October 1976 between the domestic political groups generally held for about six years, despite occasional fighting. Syrian troops constituted as the Arab Deterrent Force by the Arab League have remained in Lebanon. Syria's move toward supporting the Lebanese Muslims and the Palestinians and Israel's growing support for Lebanese Christians brought the two sides into rough equilibrium, but no progress was made toward national reconciliation or political reforms--the original cause of the war. Continuing Israeli concern about the Palestinian presence in Lebanon led to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in June 1982. Israeli forces occupied all of the southern portion of the country and mounted a summer-long siege of Beirut, which resulted in the evacuation of the PLO from Beirut in September under the supervision of a multinational force (MNF) made up of US, French, and Italian troops. Within days of the departure of the MNF, Lebanon's newly elected president, Bashir Gemayel, was assassinated. In the wake of his death, Christian militiamen massacred hundreds of Palestinian refugees in two Beirut camps. This prompted the return of the MNF to ease the security burden on Lebanon's weak Army and security forces. In late March 1984 the last MNF units withdrew. Lebanese Parliamentarians met in Taif, Saudi Arabia in late 1989 and concluded a national reconciliation pact that codified a new power-sharing formula, specifiying a Christian president but giving Muslims more authority. Rene Muawad was subsequently elected president on 4 November 1989, ending a 13-month period during which Lebanon had no president and rival Muslim and Christian governments. Muawad was assassinated 17 days later, on 22 November; on 24 November Elias Harawi was elected to succeed Muawad. Progress toward lasting political compromise in Lebanon has been stalled by opposition from Christian strongman Gen. Michel Awn. Awn--appointed acting Prime Minister by outgoing president Amin Gemayel in September 1988--called the national reconciliation accord illegitimate and has refused to recognize the new Lebanese Government. Lebanon continues to be partially occupied by Syrian troops. Syria augmented its troop presence during the weeks following Muawad's assassination. Troops are deployed in West Beirut and its southern suburbs, in Al Biqa, and in northern Lebanon. Iran also maintains a small contingent of revolutionary guards in Al Biqa, from which it supports Lebanese Islamic fundamentalist groups. Israel withdrew the bulk of its forces from the south in 1985, although it still retains troops in a 10-km-deep security zone north of its border with Lebanon. Israel arms and trains the Army of South Lebanon (ASL), which also occupies the security zone and is Israel's first line of defense against attacks on its northern border. The following description is based on the present constitutional and customary practices of the Lebanese system.


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Population: 3,339,331 (July 1990), growth rate 1.3% (1990)

Nationality: noun--Lebanese (sing., pl.; adjective--Lebanese

Ethnic groups: 93% Arab, 6% Armenian, 1% other

Languages: Arabic and French (both official; Armenian, English

Religions: 75% Islam, 25% Christian, NEGL% Judaism; 17 legally recognized sects--4 Orthodox Christian (Armenian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, Nestorean, Syriac Orthodox), 7 Uniate Christian (Armenian Catholic, Caldean, Greek Catholic, Maronite, Protestant, Roman Catholic, Syrian Catholic), 5 Islam (Alawite or Nusayri, Druze, Ismailite, Shia, Sunni), and 1 Jewish

Demographic profile

Age structure

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate

Birth rate: 28 births/1000 population (1990)

Death rate: 7 deaths/1000 population (1990)

Net migration rate: - 8 migrants/1000 population (1990)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

Environment
Current issues: rugged terrain historically helped isolate, protect, and develop numerous factional groups based on religion, clan, ethnicity; deforestation; soil erosion; air and water pollution; desertification

Air pollutants

Sex ratio

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 49 deaths/1000 live births (1990)

Life expectancy at birth: 66 years male, 70 years female (1990)

Total fertility rate: 3.7 children born/woman (1990)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy: 75%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Lebanon; note--may be changed to Lebanese Republic

Government type: republic

Capital: Beirut

Administrative divisions: 5 governorates (muhafazat, singular--muhafazah; Al Biqa, Al Janub, Ash Shamal, Bayrut, Jabal Lubnan

Dependent areas

Independence: 22 November 1943 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)

National holiday: Independence Day, 22 November (1943)

Constitution: 26 May 1926 (amended)

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

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: compulsory for all males at age 21; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education

Executive branch: Chief of State--Elias HARAWI (since 24 November 1989; Head of Government--Prime Minister Salim AL-HUSS (since 24 November 1989)

Legislative branch: Army, Navy, Air Force

Judicial branch: four Courts of Cassation (three courts for civil and commercial cases and one court for criminal cases)

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: Arab League, CCC, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB--Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, IWC--International Wheat Council, NAM, OIC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WSG, WTO

Diplomatic representation
In the us: Ambassador (vacant; Charge d'Affaires Suleiman RASSI; note--the former Lebanese Ambassador, Dr. Abdallah Bouhabib, is loyal to Gen. Awn and has refused to abandon his residence or relinquish his post; Chancery at 2,560 28th Street NW, Washington DC 20,008; telephone (202) 939-6,300; there are Lebanese Consulates General in Detroit, New York, and Los Angeles; US--Ambassador John T. MCCARTHY; Embassy at Avenue de Paris, Beirut (mailing address is P. O. Box 70-840, Beirut; telephone p961o 417,774 or 415,802, 415,803, 402,200, 403,300

Flag description: three horizontal bands of red (top), white (double width), and red with a green and brown cedar tree centered in the white band

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Severe factional infighting in 1989 has been destroying physical property, interrupting the established pattern of economic affairs, and practically ending chances of restoring Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. The ordinary Lebanese citizen struggles to keep afloat in an environment of physical danger, high unemployment, and growing shortages. The central government's ability to collect taxes has suffered greatly from militia control and taxation of local areas. As the civil strife persists, the US dollar has become more and more the medium of exchange. Transportation, communications, and other parts of the infrastructure continue to deteriorate. Family remittances, foreign political money going to the factions, international emergency aid, and a small volume of manufactured exports help prop up the battered economy. Prospects for 1990 are grim, with expected further declines in economic activity and living standards.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate

Real gdp per capita

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin

Agriculture products: accounts for about one-third of GDP; principal products--citrus fruits, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco, hemp (hashish), sheep, and goats; not self-sufficient in grain

Industries: banking, food processing, textiles, cement, oil refining, chemicals, jewelry, some metal fabricating

Industrial production growth rate: NA%

Labor force:

Unemployment rate: 33% (1987 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget: revenues $50 million; expenditures $650 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1988 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $1.0 billion (f.o.b., 1987)
Commodities: agricultural products, chemicals, textiles, precious and semiprecious metals and jewelry, metals and metal products
Partners: Saudi Arabia 16%, Switzerland 8%, Jordan 6%, Kuwait 6%, US 5%

Imports: $1.5 billion (c.i.f., 1987)
Commodities: NA
Partners: Italy 14%, France 12%, US 6%, Turkey 5%, Saudi Arabia 3%

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $935 million (December 1988)

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Lebanese pounds (LL) per US$1--474.21 (December 1989), 496.69 (1989), 409.23 (1988), 224.60 (1987), 38.37 (1986), 16.42 (1985)


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Electricity
Capacity: 1,381,000 kW capacity; 3,870 million kWh produced, 1,170 kWh per capita (1989)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones

Telephone system

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Percent of gdp: NA

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 9 total, 8 usable; 5 with permanent-surface runways; none with runways over 3,659 m; 3 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 2 with runways 1,220-2,439 m; none under the direct control of the Lebanese Government

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil, 72 km (none in operation)

Railways

Roadways

Waterways

Merchant marine: 67 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 325,361 GRT/494,319 DWT; includes 43 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo, 2 vehicle carrier, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 2 container, 7 livestock carrier, 1 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 1 chemical tanker, 1 specialized tanker, 6 bulk, 1 combination bulk

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: separated from Israel by the 1949 Armistice Line; Israeli troops in southern Lebanon since June 1982; Syrian troops in northern Lebanon since October 1976

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of opium poppy and cannabis for the international drug trade; opium poppy production in Al Biqa is increasing; most hashish production is shipped to Western Europe