Country Fast Facts: Lebanon

Following the capture of Syria from the Ottoman Empire by Anglo-French forces in 1918, France received a mandate over this territory and separated out a region of Lebanon in 1920. France granted this area independence in 1943.

A lengthy civil war (1975-1990) devastated the country, but Lebanon has since made progress toward rebuilding its political institutions. Under the Ta'if Accord - the blueprint for national reconciliation - the Lebanese established a more equitable political system, particularly by giving Muslims a greater voice in the political process while institutionalizing sectarian divisions in the government. Since the end of the war, Lebanon has conducted several successful elections, most militias have been disbanded, and the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) have extended authority over about two-thirds of the country. Hizballah, a radical Shi'a organization listed by the US State Department as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, retains its weapons.

During Lebanon's civil war, the Arab League legitimized in the Ta'if Accord Syria's troop deployment, numbering about 16,000 based mainly east of Beirut and in the Bekaa Valley. Damascus justified its continued military presence in Lebanon by citing Beirut's requests and the failure of the Lebanese Government to implement all of the constitutional reforms in the Ta'if Accord. Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon in May 2000, however, encouraged some Lebanese groups to demand that Syria withdraw its forces as well. The passage of UNSCR 1559 in early October 2004 - a resolution calling for Syria to withdraw from Lebanon and end its interference in Lebanese affairs - further emboldened Lebanese groups opposed to Syria's presence in Lebanon.

The assassination of former Prime Minister Rafiq HARIRI and 20 others in February 2005 led to massive demonstrations in Beirut against the Syrian presence ("the Cedar Revolution"). Syria finally withdrew the remainder of its military forces from Lebanon in April 2005. In May-June 2005, Lebanon held its first legislative elections since the end of the civil war free of foreign interference, handing a majority to the bloc led by Saad HARIRI, the slain prime minister's son. Hizballah kidnapped two Israeli soldiers in July 2006 leading to a 34-day conflict with Israel. UNSCR 1701, which passed in August 2006, called for the disarmament of Hizballah.

Source: CIA World Fact Book

Population:
3,925,502 (July 2007 est.)

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Age structure:
0-14 years: 26.2% (male 525,199/female 504,240)
15-64 years: 66.7% (male 1,255,624/female 1,361,265)
65 years and over: 7.1% (male 125,904/female 153,270) (2007 est.)

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Median age:
total: 28.3 years
male: 27.2 years
female: 29.5 years (2007 est.)

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Population growth rate:
1.198% (2007 est.)

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Birth rate:
18.08 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Death rate:
6.1 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)

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Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.042 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.922 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.821 male(s)/female
total population: 0.944 male(s)/female (2007 est.)

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Infant mortality rate:
total: 23.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 25.94 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 20.71 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)

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Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 73.15 years
male: 70.67 years
female: 75.77 years (2007 est.)

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Total fertility rate:
1.88 children born/woman (2007 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2001 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
2,800 (2003 est.)

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HIV/AIDS - deaths:
less than 200 (2003 est.)

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Nationality:
noun: Lebanese (singular and plural)
adjective: Lebanese

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Ethnic groups:
Arab 95%, Armenian 4%, other 1%
note: many Christian Lebanese do not identify themselves as Arab but rather as descendents of the ancient Canaanites and prefer to be called Phoenicians

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Religions:
Muslim 59.7% (Shi'a, Sunni, Druze, Isma'ilite, Alawite or Nusayri), Christian 39% (Maronite Catholic, Greek Orthodox, Melkite Catholic, Armenian Orthodox, Syrian Catholic, Armenian Catholic, Syrian Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Chaldean, Assyrian, Copt, Protestant), other 1.3%
note: 17 religious sects recognized

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Languages:
Arabic (official), French, English, Armenian

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Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 87.4%
male: 93.1%
female: 82.2% (2003 est.)

321173
The 1975-90 civil war seriously damaged Lebanon's economic infrastructure, cut national output by half, and all but ended Lebanon's position as a Middle Eastern entrepot and banking hub. In the years since, Lebanon has rebuilt much of its war-torn physical and financial infrastructure by borrowing heavily - mostly from domestic banks. In an attempt to reduce the ballooning national debt, the Rafiq HARIRI government began an austerity program, reining in government expenditures, increasing revenue collection, and privatizing state enterprises, but economic and financial reform initiatives stalled and public debt continued to grow despite receipt of more than $2 billion in bilateral assistance at the Paris II Donors Conference. The Israeli-Hizballah conflict caused an estimated $3.6 billion in infrastructure damage in July and August 2006, and internal Lebanese political tension continues to hamper economic activity.

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GDP (purchasing power parity):
$22.02 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP (official exchange rate):
$19.89 billion (2006 est.)

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GDP - real growth rate:
-6.4% (2006 est.)

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GDP - per capita (PPP):
$5,700 (2006 est.)

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GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 7%
industry: 21%
services: 72% (2005)

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Labor force:
1.5 million
note: in addition, there are as many as 1 million foreign workers (2005 est.)

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Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA%
services: NA%

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Unemployment rate:
20% (2006 est.)

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Population below poverty line:
28% (1999 est.)

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Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
4.8% (2006 est.)

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Investment (gross fixed):
17.8% of GDP (2006 est.)

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Budget:
revenues: $4.444 billion
expenditures: $7.429 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2006 est.)

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Public debt:
209% of GDP (2006 est.)

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Agriculture - products:
citrus, grapes, tomatoes, apples, vegetables, potatoes, olives, tobacco; sheep, goats

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Industries:
banking, tourism, food processing, jewelry, cement, textiles, mineral and chemical products, wood and furniture products, oil refining, metal fabricating

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Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

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Electricity - production:
9.762 billion kWh (2004)

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Electricity - consumption:
9.529 billion kWh (2004)

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Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports:
450 million kWh (2004)

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Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)

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Oil - consumption:
107,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

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Oil - exports:
NA bbl/day

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Oil - imports:
NA bbl/day

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Oil - proved reserves:
0 bbl

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Natural gas - production:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

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Natural gas - consumption:
0 cu m (2004 est.)

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Current account balance:
-$5.339 billion (October 2006)

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Exports:
$1.881 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

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Exports - commodities:
authentic jewelry, inorganic chemicals, miscellaneous consumer goods, fruit, tobacco, construction minerals, electric power machinery and switchgear, textile fibers, paper

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Exports - partners:
Syria 26.4%, UAE 11.8%, Switzerland 7.9%, Saudi Arabia 5.6%, Turkey 4.4% (2006)

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Imports:
$9.34 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

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Imports - commodities:
petroleum products, cars, medicinal products, clothing, meat and live animals, consumer goods, paper, textile fabrics, tobacco

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Imports - partners:
Syria 11.4%, Italy 9.6%, US 9.2%, France 7.6%, Germany 5.9%, China 4.9%, Saudi Arabia 4.7% (2006)

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Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$16.78 billion (2006 est.)

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Debt - external:
$31.1 billion (2006 est.)

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Economic aid - recipient:
$2.2 billion received (2003) from the $4.2 billion in soft loans pledged at the November 2002 Paris II Aid Conference

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Currency (code):
Lebanese pound (LBP)

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Exchange rates:
Lebanese pounds per US dollar - 1,507.5 (2006), 1,507.5 (2005), 1,507.5 (2004), 1,507.5 (2003), 1,507.5 (2002)

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Fiscal year:
calendar year