October 2024
04Oct

Assessing Immigration Impacts in Developing Countries. The Case of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon

By Riccardo Magnani & Marie-Claude KAMAR This article analyzes the effects of low-skilled immigration in developing countries characterized by a large informal sector, high unemployment (especially among highly educated people), and low participation of women in the labor force. We use an OLG model to account for the general equilibrium linkages between the immigration shock, the level of wages and employment, the education choice, and the emigration choice made by natives. The model includes search and matching frictions in the...

October 4, 2024
Articles, Labor Market, , , ,
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May 2024
15May

Pension Reform in Lebanon: Good Intentions, Uncertain Outcomes

By Haneen Sayed, David Robalino, Ibrahim Muhanna   The passing of Pension Law 319 by Lebanon’s Parliament in December 2023 was a milestone. For decades, the vast majority of the Lebanese people have lived with little or no income security in their old age, a situation that has worsened since the economic-financial crisis that began in 2019. Approximately 80 percent of the Lebanese population has no formal pension coverage, which forces elderly people to rely on family or other types of informal support. Rapid...

May 15, 2024
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September 2021
10Sep

Social Protection in Lebanon Bridging the Immediate Response With Long- Term Priorities

By Unicef, ILO, & Beyond Since the Beirut Port explosion in August 2020 the social protection debate has been focused on the immediate and short-term response. Building on ongoing efforts for the development of a national social protection strategy for Lebanon, it is important to align the emergency response with medium term priorities and a longer-term vision for the sector. This paper serves to complement the Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF)1. It draws on the findings of various assessments in...

September 10, 2021
Books, System Sustainability, ,
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March 2021
30Mar

Lebanon crisis robs pensioners of cash cushions

Samir Merhi returned to Lebanon in 2009, hoping the fortune he made abroad would let him retire comfortably at home, but the country's economic crisis has upended his dreams and forced him to leave again. For four decades, Merhi said he made "millions" working in the fashion and construction industries in Britain and the Gulf, but draconian controls imposed by Lebanese banks have trapped his life savings. Speaking in a hotel in Beirut's commercial district of Hamra, Merhi said he was...

March 30, 2021
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June 2019

28Jun

Lebanon’s retired military personnel protest over cuts in benefits

Military veterans held demonstrations Thursday by blocking roads and burning tires in several Lebanese areas to protest over the 2019 state budget which cut their pensions and retirement benefits, the National News Agency reported. Protests began at 5 a.m. in the morning and ended at 9 a.m. following a statement by the Lebanese army calling on the protesters to open roads while emphasizing their solidarity with retired military army and their rights. Meanwhile, retired military personnel issued a statement...

June 28, 2019
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April 2019

17Apr

Lebanese PM warns of catastrophe without austerity

Lebanon faces catastrophe if the government does not agree what may be the most austere budget in its history, the prime minister said on Wednesday, urging national unity and saying everyone should be ready for sacrifices if necessary. Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri’s government is finalizing a 2019 state budget expected to follow through on its promise of “difficult and painful” reforms to put the public finances on a sustainable path. The budget is seen as a critical test of...

April 17, 2019
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