Lebanon is in a critical socio-economic situation and protests in recent days have led the population to make the situation worse on a daily basis. On 30 April, Prime Minister Hassan Diab presented an economic and financial plan to deal with a debt of 92 miles. These include the decision to convene the IMF, which has asked it for a subsidy of at least $10 million.

In return, austerity

In return, Lebanon will have to adopt a number of reforms which, in its view, are not sufficient. As you know, the IMF is a strong advocate of dismantling public services and distributing aid, provided that the recipient executes austerity policies.

Although already in 2018, Beirut has agreed to allocate 10 miles of dollars to Lebanon, however, it has not yet received them, because it has not carried out the necessary reforms.

Since autumn 2019, the poverty rate in Lebanon has risen from 35% to 45%, according to data from the Noos Institute. Excessive inflation also worsens the daily lives of citizens. In addition, the containment to fight the coronavirus has worsened the situation. Proof of this is the protests of the last few days. The demonstrators are addressing the banks, accusing them of interacting with the government and being responsible for the state’s debt and bankruptcy. Dozens of people have been beaten and one died in the course of this week’s demonstration.