World Bank Launches $250 Million LEAP to Revive Lebanon's Infrastructure
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai
Beirut's landscape, battered by the 14‑month Hezbollah–Israel war, is set for a critical transformation as the World Bank green‑lights a US$250 million financing package to support urgent restoration and rubble management. Dubbed the Lebanon Emergency Assistance Project, this initiative marks the initial phase of a US$1 billion, government‑led framework aimed at breathing life back into vital public infrastructure and essential services.
Damage and needs assessments conducted between 8 October 2023 and 20 December 2024 estimate total conflict losses at US$7.2 billion, with an overarching reconstruction requirement of US$11 billion. Of this, approximately US$1.1 billion pertains to infrastructure across transport, water, energy, municipal services, education and healthcare – the precise sectors that LEAP will target for immediate interventions.
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Jean‑Christophe Carret, the World Bank's Middle East director, described LEAP's design as 'a credible vehicle for development partners to align their support, alongside continued progress on the Government's reform agenda, and maximise collective impact in support of Lebanon's recovery and long‑term reconstruction'. The financing will fund rapid repairs to lifeline services, sustainable clearance of rubble prioritising recycling, and initial design and environmental studies for longer‑term rebuilding.
By adopting a data‑driven, area‑based prioritisation endorsed by the Council of Ministers, LEAP aims to balance speed with social and economic impact in the worst‑affected regions. To ensure accountability and effective delivery, Lebanon has initiated reforms within the Council for Development and Reconstruction, including the appointment of a fully functional board and streamlined processes consistent with international emergency‑response standards.
Operational oversight will be bolstered by an international private‑sector engineering firm, responsible for compliance monitoring across technical, environmental, fiduciary and AML/CFT requirements. Implementation rests under the strategic guidance of the Prime Minister's Office, with the Ministry of Public Works and Transport leading execution and the Ministry of Environment overseeing social and environmental safeguards, especially debris handling.
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam welcomed the funding as 'a key step in reconstruction… reinforcing recovery efforts within a state‑led framework and paving the way for much‑needed additional financing'.
The World Bank has previously confirmed that this initial contribution is part of a US$1 billion scalable fund, with $250 million already committed and plans for donor contributions to fill the remaining $750 million. Lebanon has already secured preliminary approval to raise the World Bank loan to $400 million, signalling growing momentum for the broader rehabilitation agenda.
LEAP emerges at a juncture when Lebanon, in the grip of one of its most severe financial crises in modern history, is balancing a recovery from war with deep‑rooted economic collapse. Nearly three‑quarters of its population live in poverty, the currency has collapsed by over 90 % since 2019, and public services have all but collapsed. The project's prioritisation of transparency, environmental best practice, and governance reform offers a fresh test of Lebanon's capacity to channel international finance into tangible, equitable recovery.
Meanwhile, the World Bank is coordinating with multilateral and bilateral donors, aligning its initial funding with evolving Lebanese reforms. The ultimate success of LEAP depends not only on reconstruction dollars, but on effective institutional stewardship—a challenge Lebanon's government has pledged to embrace.
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Between January and September, it grew at an av- erage 3.23%. Furthermore, since the Tinubu adminis- tration took office at the end of May 2023, the economy has consistently grown and this growth is broad-based. Data published by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics for Q3 2024 shows that 97% of our economy con- tinues to grow. An area that has been of concern is our financial system – especially the market for foreign exchange. The new team at the CBN led by the Governor, Yemi Car- doso, has instituted a wide range of reform measures which have reversed the adverse impression about the safety and reliability of our financial system. Ensuring payment of 'trapped' mon- ies and settling outstanding debts, and various reforms of the foreign exchange market and its requirement for capital enhancement by banks, have resulted in greater confidence in our financial system. 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Of course access to food is a major com- ponent of quality of life for our citizens. Even though the agricultural output is improving, with 1.1% growth between July and September 2024, this is too slow to enable us feed our citizens and our sub-regional compatriots. We are work- ing to stimulate growth in the agriculture sector to increase beyond the rate of population increase. It is also very important for us that output in the energy sector – oil, gas and electricity – improves considerably. Nigeria has industrial ambitions and these cannot be realised without energy input. In my view, we need to consider various options for stimulating investment in the energy sector. Without an efficient and cost-competitive energy sector, we will be unable to get our manufacturing and processing sector into a position where it can take advantage of the opportunities inherent in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA). 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The pain of reform, especially in the context of the significant trust deficit that we inherited, makes it difficult to im- plement. Trust, once lost, is difficult to regain. Obvious as this may be, it is even more difficult in the setting where politics makes consensus-building very difficult. With international banks scaling back opera- tions in Africa and foreign direct investment slowing, how concerned are you about these trends? What steps is your administration taking to attract both domestic and foreign investments? Any development that narrows access to capital, be it for government or non-gov- ernment operators, is a source of concern. It is important to note that notwithstand- ing your comment about slowing foreign direct investment (FDI), data indicates that FDI growth exceeds export growth, with the gap projected to widen. This speaks eloquently to an important strategic option for capital-constrained economies. One of the key outcomes of Covid-19 is the trend towards increasing regionalisa- tion of supply chains. Producer nations are realising the importance of being situated closer to markets and thus investing in the creation of hubs to serve a collection of markets. For me, the importance of this is that Nigeria must in some respects improve its attractiveness to investment. I deliberately speak of investment, as opposed to for- eign investment. It is important that the economic environment becomes such that domestic wealth-holders find the home arena more attractive. Failure in this re- gard will lead to capital flight, pressures on the exchange rate and further disruption to the economy. We must ensure that we keep infla- tion down. Without this, our ability to effectively hold our domestic markets and compete in foreign markets is imperilled. Furthermore, a high rate of increase in prices undermines domestic investor will- ingness to hold assets – especially finan- cial assets – in our currency. The resulting adoption of other currencies (in our case, the US dollar) makes the management of domestic monetary policy more difficult. To be attractive to investment, the quality and quantity of our labour force must be such as to enable cost-effective production. In this regard, the ongoing work around the curriculum in the educa- tion sector is very important. The issues around the need for regu- latory certainty cannot be overlooked. The making and enforcement of rules and regulations cannot be arbitrary without damaging our national interest. I do not underestimate the importance of security – both at our borders and in domestic law and order. The issues I have referred to are all be- ing worked on, in initiatives spread across the government. Our insistence on execut- ing the reform measures we have is the first example of our recognition that with- out reforms, the status quo would leave our economy unattractive and in danger. Secondly, working to ensure that yields on assets, net of inflation, are positive rep- resents a clear understanding that we can- not endanger the resources of indigenous wealth-holders without further damage to the economy. Thirdly, we have restructured the Min- istry of Finance Incorporated (MoFI) as part of an effort to better manage the na- tional balance sheet by identifying assets and enabling these to be more aggressively managed in the national interest. In this vein, work is ongoing to stream- line the public agencies responsible for managing public assets, namely the In- frastructure Concession and Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), aside from the MoFI. How critical is it to support national champi- ons like the Dangote Group to drive Nigeria's industrial transformation and reduce import dependency? We are clear about the importance of be- ing able to produce for the domestic and international markets. We will be unable to benefit from the opportunities inher- ent in the AfCFTA if we cannot produce competitively. Indeed, one of the trends in the Nigerian economy that we must work to improve is the almost stagnant contribution of our processing sectors to our national output. We need the process- ing sectors – manufacturing, construction, utilities – to raise their contribution to the national economy, perhaps at a minimum to double the current levels. I do sometimes wonder whether we are import dependent. What is the bench- mark for classifying a nation as import dependent? With imports at less than 20% of national output, we compare favourably with sub-regional and continental peers. Some African countries have import levels as high as half their national output. I concede that we are not transforming our imports into exports. This underscores the importance of national champions; but the appropriate agencies must ensure that dominance of domestic markets is not to our national disadvantage. How significantly is the Dangote refinery contributing to improving Nigeria's current account balance and the overall balance of payments? The Dangote Group works in major sec- tors of the economy, among other leading manufacturers. Improving the manufac- turing sector is a major focus of this ad- ministration, to moderate manufactured goods imports and improve the current account balance for reserves accretion. Dangote Group has commenced petro- leum motor spirit production, with 650,000 barrels capacity. This will be complement- ed by the BUA Group refinery with 250,000 barrels capacity that will come on stream soon. These developments take a major demand pressure off foreign exchange. Thus, the increased domestic refining capacity, coupled with other manufactur- ing activities, will help to moderate im- portation, improving our current account balance and the balance of payments. During your recent Eurobond roadshow, what feedback did you receive from investors re- garding Nigeria's economic direction and investment opportunities? The oversubscription of our latest Eu- robond at $9.1bn (instead of $2.2bn) indi- cates our successful return to the global market and showcases Nigeria as a profit- able investment destination. Note that the Russia-Ukraine war oc- casioned global contractionary monetary policy to combat global inflation, and this moderated the attractiveness of develop- ing economies' Eurobonds in the global market. It further signals improved confidence in the President's economic strategy; im- proved confidence in the economy gener- ally; confidence in the debt repayment capacity of the economy and that the Presidential investment targets directive to Ministries, departments and agencies, with the expected improvement in the growth trajectory of the economy, will help investment opportunities and reduce risks. Looking ahead, what are your key priorities, and why should investors remain confident in Nigeria? My priorities remain bringing down in- flation while significantly growing the economy, with a strong social protec- tion regime in place. The US fought in- flation with high interest rates, yet grew the economy with investment funded by savings not debt. We aim to do likewise. Investors have already signalled confi- dence by subscribing to our debt instru- ments. Both the recent Eurobond issue and the earlier domestic issuance of US dollar denominated bonds were over- subscribed. Going forward, our agenda is to enable a stable, rapidly growing, inclusive and sustainable economy. This will most cer- tainly enable investors, especially long- term investors, to realise their aspirations. All Nigerians and those resident in Nigeria will experience an uplift in quality of life. Nigeria has ambitious infrastructure plans, including major gas pipeline projects to Eu- rope via Morocco and Algeria. What are the government's broader plans? The infrastructure stock as a share of GDP is currently 35%; the ambitious invest- ment plan is to move toward 75%, as this is necessary to unlock our potential for sustained productivity. Plans for infrastructure investment are guided by the Revised National Integrated Infrastructure Master Plan (NIIMP). The financing arrangement cuts across debt, equity and public-private partnerships. © Copyright IC Publications 2022 Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
