Map of Lebanon | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Following World War I France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French demarcated the region of Lebanon in 1920 and granted this area independence in 1943. Since independence the country has been marked by periods of political turmoil interspersed with prosperity built on its position as a regional center for finance and trade. The country's 1975-90 civil war that resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities was followed by years of social and political instability. Sectarianism is a key element of Lebanese political life. Neighboring Syria has historically influenced Lebanon's foreign policy and internal policies and its military occupied Lebanon from 1976 until 2005. The Lebanon-based Hizballah militia and Israel continued attacks and counterattacks against each other after Syria's withdrawal and fought a brief war in 2006. Lebanon's borders with Syria and Israel remain unresolved.


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Location: Middle East bordering the Mediterranean Sea between Israel and Syria

Geographic coordinates: 33 50 N 35 50 E

Map reference: Middle East

Area
Total: 10,400 km²
Land: 10,230 km²
Water: 170 km²
Rank: 170
Comparative: about one-third the size of Maryland

Land boundaries
Total: 484 km
Border countries: (2) Israel 81 km; Syria 403 km

Coastline: 225 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: Mediterranean; mild to cool wet winters with hot dry summers; the Lebanon Mountains experience heavy winter snows

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

Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
Extremes highest point: Qornet es Saouda 3,088 m

Natural resources: limestone iron ore salt water-surplus state in a water-deficit region arable land

Land use
Agricultural land: 63.3%
Forest: 13.4%
Other: 23.3%

Irrigated land: 1040 km² (2003)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources: 4.5 km³ (2011)

Natural hazards: dust storms sandstorms

Geography
Note: smallest country in continental Asia; Nahr el Litani is the only major river in Near East not crossing an international boundary; rugged terrain historically helped isolate protect and develop numerous factional groups based on religion clan and ethnicity


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Population: 6,184,701 (July 2015 est.)
Rank: 109
Growth rate: 0.86% (2015 est.)
Growth rate rank: 128
Below poverty line: 28.6% (2004 est.)

Nationality
Noun: Lebanese
Adjective: Lebanese

Ethnic groups: Arab 95% Armenian 4% other 1%
Note: many Christian Lebanese do not identify themselves as Arab but rather as descendents of the ancient Canaanites and prefer to be called Phoenicians

Languages: Arabic (official) French English Armenian

Religions: Muslim 54% (27% Sunni 27% Shia) Christian 40.5% (includes 21% Maronite Catholic 8% Greek Orthodox 5% Greek Catholic 6.5% other Christian) Druze 5.6% very small numbers of Jews Baha'is Buddhists Hindus and Mormons
Note: 18 religious sects recognized

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 25.08%
15-24 years: 17.04%
25-54 years: 44.13%
55-64 years: 7.18%
65 years and over: 6.58% (2015 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 47.3%
Youth dependency ratio: 35.4%
Elderly dependency ratio: 12%
Potential support ratio: 8.3%

Median age
Total: 29.4 years
Male: 28.8 years
Female: 30 years

Population growth rate: 0.86% (2015 est.)
Rank: 128

Birth rate: 14.59 births/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 133

Death rate: 4.88 deaths/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 191

Net migration rate: -1.1 migrant(s)/1000 population (2015 est.)
Rank: 150

Population distribution

Urbanization
Urban population: 87.8% of total population
Rate of urbanization: 3.18% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: BEIRUT (capital) 2.226 million (2015)

Environment
Current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; desertification; air pollution in Beirut from vehicular traffic and the burning of industrial wastes; pollution of coastal waters from raw sewage and oil spills
International agreements party to: Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection Ship Pollution Wetlands
International agreements signed but not ratified: Environmental Modification Marine Life Conservation

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male/female
0-14 years: 1.05 male/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male/female
25-54 years: 1.02 male/female
55-64 years: 0.87 male/female
65 years and over: 0.79 male/female
Total population: 1 male/female

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate
Total: 7.76 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 8.18 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 7.32 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 155

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 77.4 years
Male: 76.18 years
Female: 78.69 years
Rank: 70

Total fertility rate: 1.73 children born/woman (2015 est.)
Rank: 169

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source:

Current health expenditure

Physicians density: 3.2 physicians/1000 population (2011)

Hospital bed density: 3.5 beds/1000 population (2012)

Sanitation facility access:

Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.06% (2014 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 116
People living with hivaids: 1800 (2014 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 117
Deaths: less than 100 (2014 est.)
Deaths rank: 117

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 30.8% (2014)
Rank: 40

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures: 2.6% of GDP (2012)
Rank: 162

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 93.9%
Male: 96%
Female: 91.8%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 14 years
Male: 14 years
Female: 14 years

Youth unemployment


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Country name
Conventional long form: Lebanese Republic
Conventional short form: Lebanon
Local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Lubnaniyah
Local short form: Lubnan
Former: Greater Lebanon
Etymology: derives from the Semitic root 'lbn' meaning 'white' and refers to snow-capped Mount Lebanon

Government type: republic

Capital
Name: Beirut
Geographic coordinates: 33 52 N 35 30 E
Time difference: UTC+2
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

Administrative divisions: 6 governorates (mohafazat singular - mohafazah); Beqaa Beyrouth (Beirut) Liban-Nord (North Lebanon) Liban-Sud (South Lebanon) Mont-Liban (Mount Lebanon) Nabatiye
Note: two new governorates - Aakkar and Baalbek-Hermel - have been legislated but not yet implemented

Dependent areas

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

National holiday: Independence Day 22 November (1943)

Constitution: drafted 15 May 1926 adopted 23 May 1926; amended several times last in 2004 (2015)

Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law based on the French civil code Ottoman legal tradition and religious laws covering personal status marriage divorce and other family relations of the Jewish Islamic and Christian communities

International law organization participation: has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Lebanon
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: unknown

Suffrage: 21 years of age; compulsory for all males; authorized for women at age 21 with elementary education; excludes military personnel

Executive branch
Chief of state: President ; note - President Michel SULAYMAN's term expired on 25 May 2014; the prime minister and his cabinet are temporarily assuming the duties of the president; as of December 2015 the National Assembly had failed to elect a president
Head of government: Prime Minister Tamam SALAM ; Deputy Prime Minister Samir MOQBIL (since 7 July 2011)
Cabinet: Cabinet chosen by the prime minister in consultation with the president and National Assembly
Electionsappointments: president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 6-year term ; first round of election held on 23 April 2014 (next to be held in 2020); prime minister and deputy prime minister appointed by the president in consultation with the National Assembly
Election results: NA; note - the April 2014 parliamentary vote failed to meet the required two-thirds majority vote threshold; subsequent voting from April 2014 through January 2016 also failed to meet a quorum or was postponed

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-Nuwab in Arabic or Assemblee Nationale in French ; note - seats are apportioned among the Christian and Muslim denominations
Note: Lebanon’s Constitution states the National Assembly cannot conduct regular business until it elects a president when the position is vacant
Elections: last held on 7 June 2009
Election results: percent of vote by coalition - March 8 Coalition 54.7% March 14 Coalition 45.3%; seats by coalition - March 14 Coalition 71; March 8 Coalition 57; seats by coalition following 16 July 2012 byelection held to fill one seat - March 14 Coalition 72 March 8 Coalition 56

Judicial branch
Highest court: Court of Cassation or Supreme Court ; Constitutional Council (consists of 10 members)
Judge selection and term of office: Court of Cassation judges appointed by Supreme Judicial Council headed by the chief justice and includes other judicial officials; judge tenure NA; Constitutional Council members appointed - 5 by the Council of Ministers and 5 by parliament; members serve 5-year terms
Subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; Courts of First Instance; specialized tribunals religious courts; military courts

Political parties and leaders:
Independent: Metn Bloc [Michel MURR]

International organization participation: ABEDA AFESD AMF CAEU FAO G-24 G-77 IAEA IBRD ICAO ICC (national committees) ICRM IDA IDB IFAD IFC IFRCS ILO IMF IMO IMSO Interpol IOC IPU ISO ITSO ITU LAS MIGA NAM OAS (observer) OIC OIF OPCW PCA UN UNCTAD UNESCO UNHCR UNIDO UNRWA UNWTO UPU WCO WFTU (NGOs) WHO WIPO WMO WTO (observer)

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Antoine CHEDID
In the us chancery: 2,560 28th Street NW Washington DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] 939-6,300
In the us FAX: [1] 939-6,324
In the us consulate general: Detroit New York Los Angeles
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador ; Charge d'Affaires Richard Henry JONES (since 6 November 2015)
From the us embassy: Awkar Lebanon
From the us mailing address: P. O. Box 70-840 Antelias Lebanon; from US: US Embassy Beirut 6,070 Beirut Place Washington DC 20,521-6,070
From the us telephone: [961] 542,600 543,600
From the us FAX: [961] 544,136

Flag description: three horizontal bands consisting of red (top) white (middle double width) and red (bottom) with a green cedar tree centered in the white band; the red bands symbolize blood shed for liberation the white band denotes peace the snow of the mountains and purity; the green cedar tree is the symbol of Lebanon and represents eternity steadiness happiness and prosperity

National symbols: cedar tree; national colors: red white green

National anthem
Name: 'Kulluna lil-watan'
Lyrics and music: Rachid NAKHLE/Wadih SABRA
Note: adopted 1927; chosen following a nationwide competition

National heritage


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Economy overview: Lebanon has a free-market economy and a strong laissez-faire commercial tradition. The government does not restrict foreign investment; however the investment climate suffers from red tape corruption arbitrary licensing decisions complex customs procedures high taxes tariffs and fees archaic legislation and weak intellectual property rights. The Lebanese economy is service-oriented; main growth sectors include banking and tourism. The 1975-90 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure cut national output by half and derailed Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. Following the civil war Lebanon rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure by borrowing heavily mostly from domestic banks which saddled the government with a huge debt burden. Pledges of economic and financial reforms made at separate international donor conferences during the 2000s have mostly gone unfulfilled including those made during the Paris III Donor Conference in 2007 following the July 2006 war. Spillover from the Syrian conflict including the influx of more than 1 million Syrian refugees has increased internal tension and slowed economic growth to the 1-2% range in 2011-13 after four years of averaging 8% growth. Syrian refugees have increased the labor supply but pushed more Lebanese into unemployment. Chronic fiscal deficits have made Lebanon’s debt-to-GDP ratio the third highest in the world; most of the debt is held internally by Lebanese banks. Weak economic growth limits tax revenues while the largest government expenditures remain debt servicing and transfers to the electricity sector. These limitations constrain other government spending and limit the government’s ability to invest in necessary infrastructure improvements such as water electricity and transportation.

Real gdp purchasing power parity:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 88

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 149

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2014 US dollars
Rank: 91

Gross national saving:
Rank: 175

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 89.5%
Government consumption: 12.5%
Investment in fixed capital: 27.2%
Investment in inventories: 0.6%
Exports of goods and services: 22.9%
Imports of goods and services: -52.7%: (2014 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 5.5%
Industry: 24.8%
Services: 69.7%

Agriculture products: citrus grapes tomatoes apples vegetables potatoes olives tobacco; sheep goats

Industries: banking tourism food processing wine jewelry cement textiles mineral and chemical products wood and furniture products oil refining metal fabricating

Industrial production growth rate: 2% (2014 est.)
Rank: 105

Labor force: 1.628 million
Note: does not include as many as 1 million foreign workers
Rank: 127
By occupation agriculture: NA%
By occupation industry: NA%
By occupation services: NA%

Unemployment rate: NA%

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: 28.6% (2004 est.)

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: NA%
Highest 10: NA%

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $10.88 billion
Expenditures: $13.95 billion
Surplus or deficit: -6.1% of GDP (2014 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 187

Taxes and other revenues: 21.7% of GDP (2014 est.)
Rank: 152

Public debt:
Note: data cover central government debt and exclude debt instruments issued by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities as well as intra-governmental debt; intra-governmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds such as for retirement medical care and unemployment
Rank: 4

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 95

Central bank discount rate:
Rank: 102

Commercial bank prime lending rate:
Rank: 119

Stock of narrow money:
Rank: 98

Stock of broad money:
Rank: 69

Stock of domestic credit:
Rank: 56

Market value of publicly traded shares:
Rank: 71

Current account balance:
Rank: 182

Exports:
Rank: 125
Commodities: jewelry base metals chemicals consumer goods fruit and vegetables tobacco construction minerals electric power machinery and switchgear textile fibers paper
Partners: Saudi Arabia 10.8% UAE 9.7% Syria 8.7% Iraq 7.6% South Africa 7% Switzerland 4% (2014)

Imports:
Rank: 80
Commodities: petroleum products cars medicinal products clothing meat and live animals consumer goods paper textile fabrics tobacco electrical machinery and equipment chemicals
Partners: China 11.8% Italy 7.7% US 6.8% France 6.2% Germany 5.4% Russia 4.5% Greece 4.1% (2014)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 39

Debt external:
Rank: 72

Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $N/A

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad: $N/A

Exchange rates:


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Electricity
Production: 13.99 billion kWh (2012 est.)
Production rank: 87
Consumption: 12.94 billion kWh (2012 est.)
Consumption rank: 82
Exports: 0 kWh (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 160
Imports: 323 million kWh (2012 est.)
Imports rank: 84
Installed generating capacity: 2.26 million kW (2012 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 103
Generation sources fossil fuels: 90.2% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 76
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 126
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 9.8% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 117
Generation sources other renewable sources: 0% of total installed capacity (2012 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 193

Coal

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 0 bbl/day (2014 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 156
Crude oil exports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 150
Crude oil imports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 213
Crude oil proven reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2015 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 155

Crude oil

Refined petroleum
Products production: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products production rank: 200
Products consumption: 125,000 bbl/day (2013 est.)
Products consumption rank: 73
Products exports: 0 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products exports rank: 191
Products imports: 126,600 bbl/day (2012 est.)
Products imports rank: 45

Natural gas
Production: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Production rank: 210
Consumption: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Consumption rank: 163
Exports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Exports rank: 131
Imports: 0 m³ (2013 est.)
Imports rank: 91
Proven reserves: 0 m³ (1 January 2014 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 157

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 16.44 million Mt (2012 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 88

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 970,000
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 16
Fixed lines rank: 77
Mobile cellular total: 4.4 million
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 75
Mobile cellular rank: 125

Telephone system
General assessment: repair of the telecommunications system severely damaged during the civil war now complete
Domestic: two mobile-cellular networks provide good service; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular subscribership roughly 100 per 100 persons
International: country code - 961; submarine cable links to Cyprus Egypt and Syria; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat ; coaxial cable to Syria (2011)

Broadcast media: 7 TV stations 1 of which is state owned; more than 30 radio stations 1 of which is state owned; satellite and cable TV services available; transmissions of at least 2 international broadcasters are accessible through partner stations (2007)

Internet
Country code: .lb
Users total: 4 million
Users percent of population: 67.2%
Users rank: 76

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures:
Rank: 11

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation: 17-30 years of age for voluntary military service; 18-24 years of age for officer candidates; no conscription (2013)

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 8 (2013)
Rank: 161
With paved runways total: 5
With paved runways over 3047 m: 1
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 2
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 1
With paved runways under 914 m: 1
With unpaved runways total: 3
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 2
With unpaved runways: 1 (2013)

Heliports: 1 (2013)

Pipelines: gas 88 km (2013)

Railways
Total: 401 km
Standard gauge: 319 km 1.435-m gauge
Narrow gauge: 82 km 1.050-m gauge
Note: rail system unusable due to damage sustained from fighting in the 1980s and in 2006
Rank: 117

Roadways
Total: 6,970 km (2005)
Rank: 146

Waterways

Merchant marine
Total: 29
By type: bulk carrier 4 cargo 7 carrier 17 vehicle carrier 1
Foreign owned: 2
Registered in other countries: 34 (2010)
Rank: 85

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Beirut Tripoli
Container port: Beirut (1,034,249)


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Disputes international: lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000 Lebanon has claimed Shab'a Farms area in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights; the roughly 2000-strong UN Interim Force in Lebanon has been in place since 1978

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 449,957 (Palestinian refugees); 5,986 (Iraq) (2014); 1,070,189 (Syria) (2015)
IDPs: 19,719 (2014)
Stateless persons: undetermined ; note - tens of thousands of persons are stateless in Lebanon including many Palestinian refugees and their descendants Syrian Kurds denaturalized in Syria in 1962 children born to Lebanese women married to foreign or stateless men; most babies born to Syrian refugees and Lebanese children whose births are unregistered

Illicit drugs: cannabis cultivation dramatically reduced to 2,500 hectares in 2002 despite continued significant cannabis consumption; opium poppy cultivation minimal; small amounts of Latin American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin transit country on way to European markets and for Middle Eastern consumption; money laundering of drug proceeds fuels concern that extremists are benefiting from drug trafficking