The damage caused to the road network by the storm that hit Lebanon in December cost the Ministry of Public Works USD 1.5 million, at a time when the Ministry’s budget for all road-related matters for the years 2022 and 2023 is USD 2.4 million. This was revealed by caretaker Minister of Public Works Ali Hamieh after a meeting with Prime Minister Najib Mikati at the Grand Serail.
After the meeting, Hamieh pointed out that the Ministry needs USD 248 million to maintain highways, while periodic road maintenance requires USD 111 million. “We need at least 350 million dollars, while the current year’s budget for the Ministry is 5,400 billion Lebanese pounds, which is equivalent to 60 million dollars,” Hamieh stated, noting that the road network has not been maintained since 2019.
However, he affirmed that Mikati had promised to find a solution to this problem to ensure, at the very least, the maintenance of roads, the cleaning of sewers and the opening of roads closed by snow until the finances of the Lebanese state improve.
The two officials also discussed the cyber-attack that occurred on Sunday evening at Beirut International Airport (BIA), bearing in mind that the investigation into the origin of this attack is still ongoing.
It is important to note that Mikati also received a delegation from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, led by Ahmed Khawaja, Director of the Middle East Department.
