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April 9, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

The Devil is in the Details – Lebanon Gets Boost for Infrastructure Development at Paris Donors Conference

The Devil is in the Details – Lebanon Gets Boost for Infrastructure Development at Paris Donors Conference

The Paris IV conference brought together more than 40 countries and institutions to address the need for funding infrastructure projects in Lebanon. The result, as reported in numerous media accounts, is a commitment to some $11 billion in support, mainly in the form of soft loans and concessionary financing for more than 250 projects presented by the government of Lebanon. While some may see this … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Economic development, Lebanon, News and Analysis Tagged With: CEDRE conference, IMF, Paris IV Donors Conference, Sa'ad Hariri

April 9, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

Fair Trade Lebanon Has a Banner Year Developing Local Communities through Jobs and Business Development

Fair Trade Lebanon Has a Banner Year Developing Local Communities through Jobs and Business Development

In the past few years, it has been instructive to see the achievements of Fair Trade Lebanon (FTL), an organization dedicated to empowering rural communities and women’s organizations through economic development. At a time when a great deal of attention is focused on megaprojects to advance Lebanon’s economy, FTL works at the local level to change how people build their futures. Given the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Economy, Employment, Entrepreneurism, Entrepreneurship, Girls and Women's Empowerment, Lebanon Tagged With: Fair Trade Lebanon

March 24, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

International Donors Conference on the Sahel, Much Ado…Will It Make a Difference

International Donors Conference on the Sahel, Much Ado…Will It Make a Difference

  According to a number of reports, more than 60 delegations and 14 partner countries gathered in Brussels last month to put meat on the bones of the G5 Sahel force set up in 2017 to enable Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Chad build their military capabilities to conduct anti-terrorism operations in their countries and along their borders. There were also discussions … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Africa, Countering Violent Extremism (CVE), Morocco, North Africa, Sahel Tagged With: European Council on Foreign Relations, France, G5

March 21, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

Russia Benefits from Lack of US Leadership in the Levant

Russia Benefits from Lack of US Leadership in the Levant

One can argue that America’s absent leadership from the quagmire of Libya to the ongoing shame of civilian casualties in Syria, through to border tensions between Lebanon and Hezbollah and Syria, to the gradual erosion of Iraq’s sovereignty, is a strategic choice by the Trump Administration, in some ways mirroring the Obama posture of light-handed engagement in the region. When one throws in the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hezbollah, Lebanon, News and Analysis Tagged With: Iran, Russia, Syria

March 21, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

Rome Donors Conference Supports ISF and LAF Security Efforts, Emphasize Importance of Dissociation

Rome Donors Conference Supports ISF and LAF Security Efforts, Emphasize Importance of Dissociation

 Some 40 countries gathered in Rome last week to hear details of the updated Capabilities Development Plan of the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) and the first-ever strategic plan for the Internal Security Forces (ISF). The key question from the donors was about the government’s intention to take a more active role in extending its security activities to the south, adjacent to the border with … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hezbollah, Jordan, Lebanon, Security Tagged With: EU, ISF, LAF

March 9, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

Lebanon Needs to Pass 2018 Budget before Paris Donors Conference April 6

Lebanon Needs to Pass 2018 Budget before Paris Donors Conference April 6

Not only is Lebanon’s fiscal health in question as Parliament struggles to pass a new budget, but it can ill-afford to show up at the international donors conference in Paris on April 6 without a strong case for how it will spend funds made available to Lebanon. There are three steps to be taken, starting with approval by the relevant committees, then agreement by the Cabinet and then Parliament. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Economic development, Economy, Lebanon Tagged With: international donors, national budget

March 9, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

Another Election in the Middle East – Why It Matters in Lebanon

Another Election in the Middle East – Why It Matters in Lebanon

 Lebanon is bracing for its first parliamentary election since 2009, having extended its term twice since the in the absence of the security and consensus needed to proceed. While no one expects a shake-up in the results based on a new electoral law that may enable newcomers to win several seats, there are strong currents building that may alter future “election results as usual” … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hezbollah, Lebanon Tagged With: elections, Free Patriotic Movement, Jean Oghassabian

March 1, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

So you Ask, Will there be a War in Lebanon?

So you Ask, Will there be a War in Lebanon?

Going through dozens of articles over the past month on this issue has convinced me that the prospects for war between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon in the next six months vary somewhere between 20 and 80%! Not very helpful, I know, which means that there is even a greater need to monitor communications and actions to avoid triggering a miscalculation leading to a conflict. As recently as this … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Syria Tagged With: President Michel Aoun. dissocation pollicy, Russia

February 28, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

ECFR Report Gives Mixed Grades on Counterterrorism Strategies to Morocco and Tunisia – Part 1

ECFR Report Gives Mixed Grades on Counterterrorism Strategies to Morocco and Tunisia – Part 1

A recent study by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) illustrates the challenges of proposing approaches to terrorism prevention in other countries whose methods may at times conflict with Western values of due process, reflect local power dynamics that are unique to each country, and reflect how those governments view tradeoffs between short vs long-term efforts to combat … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Countering Violent Extremism (CVE), Human Rights, Morocco, Tunisia Tagged With: EU, European Council on Foreign Relations

February 28, 2018 By Jean AbiNader Leave a Comment

The Way Forward – Counterterrorism Cooperation between Morocco and the EU – Part 2

The Way Forward – Counterterrorism Cooperation between Morocco and the EU – Part 2

In many ways, the headline Morocco: capabilities and deficiencies of a strong state sums up the section of the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) study on counterterrorism cooperation between the EU and Morocco and Tunisia. While it notes Morocco’s breadth of capabilities and its reputation as “a model of political stability, economic development, and regional integration in Africa and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Countering Violent Extremism (CVE), Human Rights, Morocco, Security Tagged With: ECFR, King Mohammed VI, NATO

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Recent Posts

  • The Devil is in the Details – Lebanon Gets Boost for Infrastructure Development at Paris Donors Conference
  • Fair Trade Lebanon Has a Banner Year Developing Local Communities through Jobs and Business Development
  • International Donors Conference on the Sahel, Much Ado…Will It Make a Difference
  • Russia Benefits from Lack of US Leadership in the Levant
  • Rome Donors Conference Supports ISF and LAF Security Efforts, Emphasize Importance of Dissociation

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Recent Blog Posts

  • The Devil is in the Details – Lebanon Gets Boost for Infrastructure Development at Paris Donors Conference
  • Fair Trade Lebanon Has a Banner Year Developing Local Communities through Jobs and Business Development
  • International Donors Conference on the Sahel, Much Ado…Will It Make a Difference
  • Russia Benefits from Lack of US Leadership in the Levant
  • Rome Donors Conference Supports ISF and LAF Security Efforts, Emphasize Importance of Dissociation
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