The Minister of Public Works and Transport in the caretaker government, Ali Hamiye, held a meeting today, Monday, in his office at the ministry, with a delegation from the World Bank headed by its Director General for the Middle East and Africa, Jean-Christophe Carret. The discussion encompassed a general overview of various developments both locally and internationally, in addition to an outline of the projects the ministry has been working on with the World Bank, and the opening of avenues for continued cooperation on new projects that the ministry is looking forward to.
Hamiye emphasized that "the regularity of political life in Lebanon and the establishment of an economic vision to save it from its crises depend on electing a president through internal dialogue among Lebanese." He noted that "the achievement of this mandate remains the responsibility of the Lebanese themselves," referring to "the increasing suffering of Lebanese today due to the recent wave of intense and new Syrian displacement to Lebanon."
Regarding the issues handled by the ministry, Hamiye and Carret conducted a general assessment of all the projects that the ministry has worked on in cooperation with the World Bank, particularly concerning the road and labor loans, the new legal framework for Lebanese ports, and the plan for the reconstruction of the Port of Beirut.
Hamiye expressed gratitude to the World Bank for "the collaboration that characterized the prior period, particularly concerning the completion of the new legal framework for the ports sector, which is considered a major reform project, especially in terms of fostering the anticipated partnership desired by the ministry between the public and private sectors, as a framework that includes the private sector to enhance and develop the role of ports, especially in their operation, while ensuring that the public sector remains represented by the Lebanese state, which holds sovereignty over its assets." He noted that "this law is now on the path to implementation, awaiting approval in the parliamentary council."
Regarding the road and labor loan, he highlighted that "road maintenance is currently ongoing throughout various districts across Lebanon, particularly in those areas where savings from the aforementioned loan are available," pointing out "the importance of continuing with such loans." He expressed "Lebanon's readiness to renew the mentioned loan to undertake rehabilitation and maintenance works for the broadest network of roads across various Lebanese regions, considering this a reform and developmental project that serves the World Bank's vision of the reform it seeks in Lebanon, while also stimulating and energizing the economic cycle, which is also reflected in the model public transport plan." He noted that "renewing the progress on this plan will have very positive effects on stimulating investments in Lebanon, which will positively impact the process of revitalizing it again."
For his part, Carret considered that "the diverse projects carried out and being undertaken by the Ministry of Public Works and Transport in collaboration with the World Bank are encouraging factors for the World Bank to look into opening new avenues for cooperation between the bank and the ministry on new projects across various sectors."
