On Thursday, Lebanon’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati said that Lebanon can still finalize a deal with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a $3 billion bailout, despite having no president and no government.
However, “It’s all up to parliament – if parliament approves it, it can go into effect,” Mikati told Reuters.
Last April, Lebanon was able to sign a draft agreement with the IMF, but the Lebanese government was slow to implement the essential reforms required to finalize a deal that will ease the current economic and humanitarian crisis.
“Despite the urgency for action to address Lebanon’s deep economic and social crisis, progress in implementing the reforms remains very slow,” said Ernesto Ramirez Rigo in September.
Even with the current socio-economic crisis that has been dragging on for three years now, the Lebanese parliament has failed to elect a new president for the fifth time, leaving a presidential vacuum since President Michel Aoun‘s term ended on October 31, 2022.
