UNRWA Urgently Calls for $13 Million in Assistance Commissioner Genera of UNRWA Philippe Lazzarini in a statement called for $13 million in financial support for Palestinian refugees residing in Lebanon. He said, “Palestine refugees, living in overcrowded camps… are at the end of their rope.” [Arab News]
Cholera Outbreak Afflicts Syrian Refugees In Camps According to the Reuters, “Syrian refugees in displacement camps are falling victim to a cholera outbreak in Lebanon, already suffering from an economic meltdown that has slashed access to clean water and strained hospitals.” [Reuters]
Minister of Finance Says Burden Of Financial Recovery Should Not Fall Solely On The Government According to the Reuters, “Lebanon’s finance minister Youssef Khalil said on Friday that the burden of repaying depositors whose funds have been frozen by the economic crisis should not fall solely on the government.” [Reuters]
New Government Formation Unlikely According To Reports According to Naharnet, “No progress has been made regarding the formation of a new government, local media reports said, despite the intensified efforts of Hezbollah and General Security chief Maj. Gen. Abbas Ibrahim. Al-Akhbar newspaper reported Friday that the efforts have almost hit a dead end and that President Michel Aoun and the FPM are planning to take different steps to prevent the caretaker government from taking the powers of the President, once Aoun’s term ends.” [Naharnet]
OPINION & ANALYSIS
Imagining A New Lebanon Jean AbiNader
AbiNader writes, “Now that the maritime deal is almost done, there seems to be an air of hope – if the three presidents can agree on a deal with Israel, there may be a future for a solid deal with the IMF, too. But if there is to be a “new” Lebanon, will reforms be enough to cultivate Lebanon’s rise from the ashes of the old, or will the seeds of democracy planted by our fore bearers fail to weed out the corruption and mismanagement? Put another way, should we wait until Lebanon self-destructs as a government before there’s a way forward? These are very tough questions, and ones which we struggle with every day at ATFL . . . There are screams for a national vision that restores social services, puts families first, and prioritizes economic stability and security. The Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF), the most trusted institution in the country, is hobbled by politicians who benefit from illicit smuggling, economic deterioration, and impaired and lacking social services. But still, hopeful people yearn for a renaissance in Lebanon.”
Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center Innovation and New Directions: Searching for Novel Paths in Arab Education Reform Wafa Al-Khadra, Shaikha Jabor Al-Thani, Nathan J. Brown, Heba El-Deghaidy, Rima Karami-Akkary, Marwan Muasher, and Christina Zacharia
Al-Khadra et. al. writes, “This paper, with many of the authors of the first report participating again, attempts to go in further depth about the findings of the first report. It is evident that Arab governments still see education reform as a top-down effort that continues to perpetuate power relations and authoritarian thinking, sidelining critical and creative thinking among students. The paper places special emphasis on several reform efforts that are being implemented across the Arab region, many in a bottom-up approach that attempts a collaborative approach with governments but is not held hostage to old authoritarian thinking. Rather than simply ad- miring the problem, the report attempts to highlight several experiences taking place within different Arab educational systems, not so much because these experiences are necessarily transportable but rather to point out that together with the challenges, there are also success- es that can be built on. Consistent with Carnegie’s strategy of working with experts from the region, the report has once again drawn on the practical experiences of experts from the Qatari, Jordanian, and Egyptian educational systems as well as from the regional, bottom-up experience of the TAMAM project, led by the Arab Thought Forum and the American University of Beirut and spanning eight different countries. Under the able coordination and facilitation of Nathan J. Brown, these experts have authored a document that I hope will further contrib- ute to the debate on education reform in the region—and help push it forward.”
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in these articles are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of the American Task Force on Lebanon, a non-profit, nonpartisan leadership organization of Lebanese-Americans.
