BEIRUT - Lebanon’s Finance Minister Yassine Jaber signed a $150 million agreement with the World Bank on Tuesday to finance a project aimed at accelerating digital transformation across government ministries and public institutions.
The project is intended to modernize Lebanon’s digital infrastructure, improve the quality and efficiency of public services, and make government services more accessible and secure for citizens.
The agreement was signed during a visit to Beirut by Dalia Khalifa, the World Bank’s newly appointed regional official for the Middle East. The visit was her first to Lebanon since taking up her new position.
Administrative Development Minister Fadi Makki, Information Technology Minister Kamal Chehadeh, the World Bank’s Lebanon office representative and a senior World Bank delegation attended the signing.
Khalifa also said she plans to spend at least one week each month in Beirut to follow up on cooperation with Lebanon, including reforms and joint projects.
Minister Jaber said the digital transformation agreement was part of ongoing cooperation between Lebanon and the World Bank, noting that several additional loans remain under consideration, including a proposed social safety net loan.
Earlier, Minister Jaber held a working meeting with Khalifa and the World Bank delegation to discuss economic reforms and joint projects in electricity, water, waste management and digitalization, as well as banking sector reforms and Lebanon’s reform process with the International Monetary Fund.
The meeting also addressed concerns over slow reforms at Électricité du Liban, particularly efforts to improve electricity collection and reduce losses across transmission networks.
Minister Jaber proposed revising the existing $250 million energy loan by reallocating part of the $90 million allocated for solar energy projects to strengthen electricity transmission networks, pending the government’s resolution of land acquisition issues for the solar projects.
On banking reforms, Minister Jaber warned that continued delays could undermine broader economic restructuring. He said Lebanon had become heavily cash-based after years of stagnation and stressed the need for Parliament to approve the banking law, which he described as essential to restoring investor and international confidence.
The $150 million digital transformation project will support secure and scalable digital infrastructure, cybersecurity, digital skills and regulatory reforms. It will also finance secure data-sharing platforms, digital identity and electronic signatures, as well as the digitization of priority public services through a unified government digital portal.
The project will also include components for project management, citizen engagement and emergency response, with the broader goal of creating a more integrated, secure and resilient digital government system.
