Lebanon public sector struggling harder amid economic meltdown

The public sector employs approximately 300,000 Lebanese, whose salaries have deteriorated. Thus, the ministries, institutions, and departments where they work have reached a standstill due to a lack of funding to keep them running even at the bare minimum capacity. This paints a 'gloomy picture' of the situation for the public sector, according to caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati.

Salaries and wages in the 2019 Budget totaled $6 billion and $700 million, representing 40 percent of public expenditures and 61 percent of treasury revenues.

However, it was remarkable that the 2022 Budget, which is currently being contested before the Constitutional Council, had been approved by the Parliament even though it did not include details of expenditures from salaries, wages, allowances, pensions, and debt service.
 
These declining budgetary figures result from the monetary and economic downturn, the most significant of which is the worsening value of the Lebanese pound compared to the US dollar. Furthermore, given the persistence of multiple exchange rates in the country, this 'bleeding' does not appear to stop anytime soon.

In this context, it's also important to highlight the necessity and urgency of the public sector's immediate reform, which should begin with reducing its size and enacting reforms through an automated system that ensures transparency and deters corruption.