Gaza media office says 700 days of Israeli bombardment caused $68 billion in damage    Modi welcomes Trump's remarks on India-US ties despite tariff tensions    British lawmakers urge boycott of Israeli President Herzog's visit    Saudi Arabia condemns Israeli calls for Palestinian displacement, backs Egypt's stance    Saudi Arabia's digital sector grows to 389,000 workers with record female participation    Riyadh Metro adjusts start time to 5:30 AM to serve commuters and students    Saudi Red Crescent to implement first aid in secondary schools    Health minister and Syrian communications minister discuss enhancing digital health cooperation    Saudi Arabia, France sign cultural cooperation program at Versailles    Executive regulations to define exceptions to deportation under amended traffic law    Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather Jr. set to meet in exhibition boxing match in 2026    Gamers frustrated as Hollow Knight: Silksong crashes stores on launch    'My mother was my shelter and storm': Arundhati Roy on her fierce new memoir    Al-Falih: Saudi Arabia expected to host over 1,000 RHQs for global companies in a few years    HONOR to participate in Global Symposium for Regulators 2025 in Saudi Arabia    Restored Big Ben tower up for architecture award    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 50 Series laptops redefine learning, creating and gaming    Al Ahli secure Flamengo starlet Matheus Gonçalves in long-term deal through 2027    Al Hilal sign Turkish defender Yusuf Akcicek on €22m deal until 2029    Al Qadsiah sign German midfielder Julian Weigl to strengthen defensive midfield    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Food prices in Lebanon spike by 55%; locals struggle to feed families
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 16 - 05 - 2020

BEIRUT -- Food prices have been on the rise in Lebanon, and an increasing number of Lebanese are struggling to provide for their families, and some are foregoing other expenses like necessary medication to put food on the table. With compounding crises, there seems to be no end in sight for the country's struggles.
On average, food prices have risen by 55 percent in Lebanon since April 2019, a recent policy paper by Lebanese think tank Triangle found. Imported food prices, which must be purchased with the country's dwindling foreign currency reserves, have seen more significant increases. Already at the end of 2019, importers warned of food shortages if the situation did not improve. So far, however, there are no shortages of basic goods.
"Now COVID-19 restrictions have widened the gulf between family incomes and food prices by slashing work hours even further, while the economy shows no signs of recovery," the paper said.
In 2007 and 2008, food prices increased by around 18 percent, but at that time there was economic growth in the country, Sami Halabi, director at Triangle and one of the authors of the paper told Al Arabiya Englsih.
Today, that is not the case as the country's economic situation continues to spiral and the coronavirus pandemic and accompanying lockdowns have put undue stress on a large segment of the population.
Now the middle class is being pushed below the poverty line as well, Halabi said.
"The immediate situation is worse [than in 2007], and the prognosis is also worse," Halabi said. "And there's no end in sight, because the government doesn't really have a plan, other than the one they just unveiled to the IMF, which seems to be quite out of touch with reality."
The country defaulted on its Eurobond payments in March, which triggered discussion with the International Monetary Fund to restructure the country's massive debt. After the government approved an economic reform plan, official talks with the IMF kicked off this week.
On Friday, the Lebanese central bank said it will aim to provide dollars for importers at an exchange rate of 3,200 Lebanese lira to the US dollar. The pegged rate remains 1,507 lira to the dollar, but inflation in recent months has seen the peg slip, and on the street, the local currency now trades at a rate of more than 4,000 lira to the dollar.
"Banque du Liban will continue to inject dollar banknotes that it acquires via the banks with the aim of financing imports at the price of 3,200 Lebanese pounds per US dollar with the aim of reducing the price of food products," the central bank said in a statement.
Halabi said the central bank's recent measure will help some, but the currency will continue to devalue.
"At the end of the day, there needs to be an emergency food security policy," he said.
No shortages yet
While there are no shortages yet, though some high-end imports have disappeared from supermarket shelves, it has become harder for the average Lebanese family to purchase necessities.
At the same time last year, those below the extreme poverty line in Lebanon needed to spend around half their income on food, deemed by international aid organization as enough to survive. Today, to buy the same amount, those families must use 79 percent of their income, Triangle found. Forty-five percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and 22 percent lives below the extreme poverty line.
Triangle's analysis found that the price of garlic has increased 95 percent, broad beans have shot up 70 percent, and rice has gone up 88 percent. Those import-dependent products have seen higher price hikes than some local products, such as salt, which has increased in price by 29 percent, and onions which have gone up 32 percent.
Lebanon is currently dependent on imports for between 65-80 percent of its food supply, and because of poor local infrastructure and weak bargaining positions farmers have against wholesalers and retailers, locally produced food is "neither particularly abundant nor cheap, with imported foods often being more affordable," the paper's authors wrote.
As Lebanon's crisis continues to deepen, and concerns that any IMF program will come at a high cost, with more austerity measures imposed on Lebanese that could most severely hurt those at the bottom of society, hunger could continue to rise in the coming months. Protesters in the northern city of Tripoli, one of the poorest cities in the country, recently reclaimed the streets, burning banks, as hunger and unemployment fuel discontent.
"The government needs to get serious very quickly," Halabi said. "Otherwise they're going to have a huge security problem on their hands." -- Al Arabiya English


Clic here to read the story from its source.