Lebanon ‘faces exodus’ of its brightest and best talent
Political, economic and social crises force thousands to seek opportunities elsewhere, new study suggests
Lebanon faces an exodus of its brightest and best talent fleeing the country to escape political, economic and social hardship, a new study suggests.
With no end in sight to Lebanon’s various crises, “hundreds of thousands will be forced to leave their homeland in pursuit of investment, work, study and retirement,” according to a report by the Crisis Observatory, a research program run by the American University of Beirut.
“The alarming percentage of Lebanese youth who want to leave, the mass migration of medical and education staff and the expected chronicity of Lebanon’s crisis are worrying signs,” said Nasser Yassine, director of the program.
According to data reviewed by the observatory, 1,600 nurses have emigrated since 2019 and hundreds of educators have left for the Gulf or North America. “At the American University of Beirut alone, 190 professors have departed, making up about 15 percent of the educational body,” its report said.
According to World Bank data, Lebanon needs between 12 and 19 years to return to its 2017 levels of GDP. This suggests a “deliberate collapse given the absence of political decisions with a serious approach to the Lebanese crisis,” the observatory said.
“If we add … another factor, which is the increasing need for labor, professionals and youth in many of the most advanced countries in the world, which are witnessing a decline in population growth rates and an increase in the proportion of the elderly, then we conclude that a large wave of Lebanese emigration in the coming years is inevitable,” it said.