 On September 23, 2025, our Institute and the American University of Beirut's Department of Economics - and as part of the recently launched "Lebanon: Towards a Productive Economy" Seminar Series - held a discussion on: "What kind of recovery? Quick wins and short term paths out of the crisis," featuring Saade Chami, Tania El Kallab, Sandeep Mahajan, Ramzi El Hafez, moderated by Ishac Diwan. The panelists examined the feasibility of the following proposals: supporting the demand side, implementing partial reforms in the banking or electricity sectors, improving the business climate through swift administrative reforms, and rebuilding the state by increasing tax revenues or utilizing externally funded reconstruction projects to energize the economy. The “Lebanon: Towards a Productive New Economy” Series aims to envision the re-launching of a desirable and feasible economic future for Lebanon. Discussions will explore the various facets of a new vision – what should we produce and export, how to ensure inclusive and sustainable growth, how to finance firms, what should be the role of the state and the market, and how to improve the country’s comparative advantages, among others – are some of the themes that will be discussed once a month by innovative panels of experts, actors, and decision-makers, based on the latest research and on on-the-ground experience.  On the sidelines of the second annual MENA Think Tank Forum (September 15-16, 2025), our Institute and the Arab Think Tank Network held a panel discussion on "Building an Arab Voice on the Governance of Global Public Goods" on September 16, with Roula Majdalani, Tarik Yousef, Ishac Diwan, moderated by Albert Kostanian. The discussion addressed key challenges and opportunities for the Arab region concerning global public goods and explored ways for regional and international collaboration that promote regional priorities while also supporting more inclusive global solutions. You can watch the full recording here: "SOVEREIGNTY RECONSTRUCTION, & REFORM: ASSESSING THE GOVERNMENT'S PROGRESS & LOOKING AHEAD"9/1/2025
 On July 4, 2025, the Institute hosted a closed roundtable on "Sovereignty, Reconstruction, & Reform: Assessing the Government's Progress & Looking Ahead," a discussion organized by a collective of policy institutes, including Arab Reform Initiative, Carnegie Middle-East Center, Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, Kulluna Irada, the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies, Middle East Institute, and The Policy Initiative.
Moderated by Institute Director Joseph Bahout, speakers included The Policy Institute Founding Director Sami Atallah, Kulluna Irada Managing Director Diana Menhen and Minister of Economy and Trade Amer Bisat. Starting with an overview of current Lebanese political dynamics within the wider regional context, the discussion tackled the government’s actions and policy direction to date, how Lebanon should approach the procurement of aid, reform priorities and challenges, as well as challenges related to policy implementation and governance. |
