The Finance and Budget Committee, chaired by MP Ibrahim Kanaan, held a meeting today, Thursday, to continue discussing the proposed law for the sovereign fund for petroleum and gas resources. The meeting was attended by the Minister of Finance in the caretaker government, Youssef Khalil, and MPs: Alain Aoun, Ali Hassan Khalil, Jamil Sayyed, Cesar Abi Khalil, Fouad Makhzoumi, Salim Aoun, Ghassan Hasbani, Hassan Fadlallah, Yassine Yassine, Melhem Khalaf, Mark Doue, Jihad al-Samad, Razi al-Haj, Ayoub Hamid, Wafiq Sadiq, Adnan Traboulsi, Taha Najy, Raji Saad, Ghada Ayoub, and Hagop Terzyan.
MP Kanaan pointed out that "today’s meeting focused on governance, including the appointment of a board of directors for the fund, according to internationally accepted standards, along with proposals to specify years of experience, and to get assistance from specialized international companies for recruitment. Additionally, there was work on including the mechanisms related to the duties of the members and the fund in the text of the law, instead of leaving everything to the implementing decrees."
He added: "I reiterate my commitment, which I emphasized in this session and all previous sessions, to handle this law without any political background, given what this project represents as hope for Lebanon, and a serious contribution to restoring financial and economic confidence, in parallel with the implementation of the required structural reforms."
Kanaan also set next Monday as the date to continue the discussion to approve the law.
