It’s the Economy, Stupid

In assessing the state of the country, at this critical juncture, there is a need to emphasize the importance of placing the economic aspirations and needs ahead of the politics. In fact, for Lebanon to be on a true trajectory of prosperity it should elevate the debate from the confessional distributions and redistributions of the pie, to the development of the economy. The major themes have so far been political. There is almost a fixation on elections, and this is totally understandable, but is it the endgame? The priority for developing countries, in this day and age, is the ability to attract and maintain capital investment and to attain a degree of economic growth that alleviates fiscal and social imbalances. Where is Lebanon in that framework? It is not enough just to reshape the political landscape and take a broom to Syrian occupation (but it’s a start). The current political