Since the beginning of the war in Syria, Lebanon has been struggling with compounded crises: a cumulated influx of 2 million refugees, massive uprisings that contested the legitimacy of the political system, an economic and financial crisis, the covid-79 pandemic and, lastly, the Beirut port explosion in August 2020. These tragic events have profoundly and structurally undermined the core functions of public institutions at the national and local government levels.
This report provides a stock-taking assessment of the state of play of local governance in Lebanon, based on sectoral case studies conducted in the governorates of Akkar, Baalback-Hermel, and North Lebanon, as part of the EU-funded MASAR programme. The thematic areas covered were Local Economic Development (LED), strategic planning, and Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). The wealth of first-hand data collected was dovetailed with existing qualitative and quantitative research led by VNGI and ORI to present a comprehensive snapshot of local governance. This is in line with MASAR’s evidence-based approach to plan, operate, and maintain sustainable services, with a specific view to create an enabling environment for WASH and LED investments.
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