The International Support Group for Lebanon said on Wednesday that “preserving Lebanon’s stability, unity, security, sovereignty, political independence and territorial integrity requires the swift formation of a government that will have the capacities and credibility to deliver on the necessary substantive policy package of economic reforms, and that will be committed to dissociate the country from regional tensions and crisis.”
In the final statement, the ISG noted that “the context requires that Lebanese authorities fully commit themselves to timely and decisive measures and reforms,” calling upon the Lebanese authorities “to adopt, in the first weeks after the formation of the new government, a reliable 2020 budget, including permanent revenue and expenditure measures, aiming at sustainable improvement of the primary balance, while strengthening social safety nets to preserve the vulnerable population.”
The group’s members also urged the Lebanese authorities in their statement to take decisive action to restore the stability of the financial sector, to tackle corruption, to implement the electricity reform plan and to markedly improve governance and the business environment, through the passing of procurement laws.
“On the longer run, within the first six months after the formation of the government, structural measures to ensure a sustainable economic model should be put in place,” the statement emphasized, adding that the members of the ISG reaffirmed that the conclusions of the CEDRE Conference, agreed upon by the Lebanese authorities on April 6, 2018, are still valid.
“The Lebanese authority should commit to prioritize the different projects of the Capital Investment Plan and set up an inter-ministerial committee. The ISG members consider that the support from international financial institutions is pivotal to help the authorities sustain their efforts to implement the necessary economic reforms over time.”
“The members of the ISG recall their willingness to support the implementation of such a set of actions, including through assistance to ensure Lebanon’s access to basic goods. They encourage the authorities to seek support from all their development partners, including international financial institutions;” according to the group’s final statement.