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Beirut – On Thursday, the International Monetary Fund stipulated the rapid formation of a government in exchange for Lebanon’s access to international support and economic reform.
“The formation of a new Lebanese government with a clear mandate is necessary to implement much-needed economic reforms to lift the country out of its financial crisis,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told a hypothetical press conference.
He urged Lebanese politicians to address the problems of corruption and waste, as they are the main cause of the collapse, and stressed that foreign donors will not extend a helping hand to Lebanon, which is mired in debt without forming a government.
The process of forming a new government to replace the interim government headed by Hassan Diab has stalled, which resigned a week after the Beirut port bombing on August 4.
The difficult living conditions push Lebanese to protest from time to time, calling for the resignation of the ruling class, which they accuse of corruption and favoritism.
Rice also asserted that the challenges facing Lebanon and the Lebanese people are greater than usual, and the need for a reform program is great.
He stressed that “it is necessary to form a new government immediately, and with a strong mandate to implement the necessary reforms.”
He added: “The International Monetary Fund is not discussing a program with Beirut at this time, but provides technical assistance to the Ministry of Finance and some state entities.”
In mid-May 2020, Lebanon began negotiations with the International Monetary Fund with the aim of obtaining financing for a plan drawn up by the government to save the country’s economy from the worst crisis it has faced in decades.
However, the negotiations stalled until they were suspended on July 3 of the same year, while the IMF attributed this at the time to internal Lebanese disputes over reforms that were stipulated to support the government’s plan.
On Thursday, the US ambassador to Beirut, Dorothy Shea, joined a group of foreign officials urging divided leaders to agree on a government to deal with the economic collapse, which is the worst crisis in Lebanon in decades.
For more than a year, Lebanon has suffered the worst economic crisis since the end of the civil war in 1990, exacerbated by the repercussions of the Corona pandemic and the catastrophic explosion in the port of the capital, Beirut.
The financial crisis has plunged the value of the currency by 90 percent and pushed many Lebanese into poverty. It also threatens imports due to a shortage of dollars. The coin has tumbled at a rapid pace in recent weeks and lost a third of its value, sparking protests and store closures.
Although the official exchange rate of the Lebanese pound against the dollar remains constant at 1507 pounds per dollar, last week the price of the green currency on the black market touched the threshold of 15 thousand pounds, ten times the official rate , before decreasing this. week at about 11 thousand pounds.
This sharp collapse in purchasing power and the exacerbation of the successive crises that afflict Lebanon have fueled the anger of citizens who constantly demonstrate in protest against its tragic conditions, and according to the United Nations, more than half of the Lebanese population lives for below the poverty line.
