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The Government Monitor No. 16 – The French-Endorsed Plan: Rebranding Old Reforms What’s the Issue at Hand? Ahead of the formation of a new cabinet, French President Emmanuel Macron presented Lebanon’s political establishment with a list of reform commitments that need to be implemented before unlocking foreign aid.1 The paper outlined 34 measures covering 15 policy areas―most of which pertained to governance, anti-corruption, and the electricity sector―and set timelines for the implementation of 24 of those. The plan requires the majority of the commitments (20) to be achieved within one month of the government gaining confidence, two within the first three months, one by the end of this year, and one within one year.2 In addition, the measures in the French-endorsed plan can be distinguished based on their nature, as six were temporary measures, two were broad principles, and 26 were specific reform steps. While the adoption of the French-endorsed plan is vital for the country’s recovery, nearly half (12) of the reform steps had been iterated in past documents―such as the ministerial statements of Hassan Diab (2020) and Saad Hariri (2019), as well as the CEDRE reform plan (2018)―raising serious concerns on the political will of the political establishment to implement these measures. 1. Temporary Measures The six temporary measures are mostly related to social protection and relief efforts, albeit not delimited by timeframes. These measures aim to control the pandemic outbreak and protect the most vulnerable populations, facilitate the distribution of foreign aid in a transparent manner, conduct an impartial investigation into the port blast, and jumpstart reconstruction works. 2. Broad Principles The French-endorsed plan requires the next government to adopt two overarching principles, which would give a message of commitment to undertake change. These are:
3. Reform Steps The reform measures address 10 policy areas: Governance (6), anti-corruption and smuggling (4), the electricity sector (4), public procurement (2), public finance (2), the financial crisis (2), the judicial system (2), parliamentary elections (2), IMF negotiations (1), and social protection (1). Some of the notable reform steps from the French-endorsed plan include:
Why is this Important? The French president waved the threat of sanctions against the political establishment and demanded the formation of a cabinet and undertaking key reforms before disbursing a foreign aid package. With the dismal track record of the country’s executive and legislative branches, the political establishment is under local and international pressures to adopt a reform program. Background Following former Prime Minister Hassan Diab’s resignation, his cabinet has unequivocally failed to abide by its ministerial statement.3 Ahead of the formation of a new government, the French president met with the political establishment to agree on a reform program as condition for receiving foreign aid. While Lebanon’s financial crisis is intensifying and a social one is looming, the country is in dire need of strong leadership and political consensus over reforms. 1 Al-Akhbar. September 2, 2020. “The French Paper: Ministerial Statement to the Pine Palace Government.” https://www.al-akhbar.com/Politics/293330. 2 One of the measures include setting a timetable for the negotiations with the IMF within the first 15 days in office. 3 The Government Monitor No. 12.February 2020. “The Ministerial Statement Falls Short of Addressing The Financial Crisis.” The Lebanese Center for Policy Studies. |
