The Ministerial Committee for Reconstruction and Economic Recovery, chaired by Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, met on Monday at the Grand Serail with Finance Minister Yassine Jaber, Energy and Water Minister Joe Saddi, Social Affairs Minister Haneen Sayed, Telecommunications Minister Charles Hage, Public Works and Transport Minister Fayez Rasamny and Environment Minister Tamara Elzein.
The meeting comes ahead of the signing of a loan agreement between the World Bank and Lebanon’s Ministry of Finance to support reconstruction efforts.
The signing ceremony is scheduled for 11 AM at the Finance Ministry headquarters in Beirut and will be attended by World Bank Regional Director Jean-Christophe Carret, Ministers of Public Works, Energy and Economy, representatives from the Prime Minister’s Office, the President of the Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) Mohammad Qabbani, and the French Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires, Bruno Pereira da Silva.
Also present at the Grand Serail were Higher Relief Commission Secretary-General Brig. Gen. Bassam Naboulsi, Head of the South Council Hashem Haidar and the President of the CDR.
In a statement, the committee reaffirmed the government’s commitment to accelerate reconstruction despite ongoing Israeli attacks and scarce public and international funding. The strategy, it said, aims to protect citizens’ dignity, ensure basic rights, and adopt sustainable and transparent plans to rebuild trust in the state.
The plan rests on three tracks: financial and social aid for displaced families and returnees; urgent repairs to infrastructure and support for economic initiatives; and a socio-economic development program for war-hit regions as the first stage of a wider national strategy. Implementation will rely on grants, loans and the state budget, with each ministry handling part of the tasks.
The Ministry of Social Affairs will launch a “Cash for Rent” program in October 2025, alongside budget allocations for the South Council and Higher Relief Commission to reinforce damaged housing. Its cash transfer scheme, launched in July to support 265,000 internally displaced Lebanese, will continue for six months before beneficiaries are integrated into the “Aman” program.
On the economic side, UN agencies are carrying out projects with the ministries and the CDR, which is overseeing the $200 million World Bank loan to modernize agriculture, improve rural infrastructure, and support farmers and small businesses. The CDR also manages the Lebanon Emergency Assistance Project (LEAP) loan, $250 million pending parliamentary approval, plus €75 million from the French Development Agency, for rebuilding infrastructure and restoring essential services.
Prime Minister Salam concluded by stressing the government’s determination to press ahead with reconstruction and follow up with international donors ahead of the support conference for Lebanon announced earlier by French President Emmanuel Macron.
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