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Ambassador to México:
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of Credentials:
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Republic of Lebanon
Beirut
4.2 million inhabitants
10 452 km²
Michel Sleiman
Saad Hariri
Republic
Nouhad Mahmoud
September 14, 1999
+961
.lb
13, 374 thousand dollars
51. 474 billion dollars
The service sector, with trade as its
main activity, generates 67 percent of
GNP
Lebanese
Lebanese Pound (LBP)
By law, the president of the republic must
be always occupied by a Maronite Chris-
tian, the prime minister for a suníh and
chairman of the Senate by a Shiite, so that
no minority in the country will be discrimi-
nated against by the government
First Minister:
Climate:
Coastal climate, very warm and humid.
During winter, it gets cold with frequent
frosts in the mountains
National Day:
November 22, to commemorate its
independence from France in 1943
Religion:
Languages:
Almost 60 per cent of the population is
Muslim, 39 Christian, particularly Maronites
along with Orthodox, Catholic and Protes-
tant communities.
Arabic and French
Lebanon, land of the Cedars
The Lebanese Republic is only 50 kilometers with a total of ten thousand 452
square kilometers.
Majestic and indestructible, the Cedar tree is the country’s emblem and
decorates its flag and shield. The Phoenicians, Greeks and Egyptians used
their wood for centuries in homes, temples, sarcophagi and galleys. Lebanon
has been a host land for persecuted minorities such as the Armenians (4
percent) and Palestinians (9.5 percent), the latter settled in refugee camps.
Ninety percent of the Lebanese population is concentrated along the coastal
cities. Currently, more than a million and half people live in Beirut, although
most of the Lebanese live abroad, in numbers estimated between ten and 15
million spread around the world.
For thousands of years, Lebanon is a land that has been inhabited by many
peoples and cultures. The Lebanese people have different ethnic origins such
as Phoenician, Assyrian, Greek, Roman, European and Arabic.
The most important economic sectors in Lebanon are: services, tourism and
banks. Its capitalist system and the bank secrecy laws in the country attracted
many capitals. The country's tourism attractions and cultural activities
make it a magnet for tourists, especially from the Arabian Gulf. In the 1970s,
Lebanon came to be regarded as the "Switzerland of the Middle East" for its
monetary wealth, which was torn by civil strife among the Lebanese (1975-
1990), destroying an exemplary political balance, and also as a consequence
of its conflicts with Israel, which invaded the country in 1982.
Lebanon is divided in eight government regions:
l
Akkar
(Muslim and Suni majorities)
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Baalbeck-Hermel
(Shiite Muslimes)
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Beirut
(50 per cent Christian and Muslim)
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Beqaa Valley
(Cristian, Muslim and Suni)
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North Lebanon
(Orthodox Christians, Muslims and Suni)
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South Lebanon
(Shiite Muslims)
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Mount Lebanon
(Maronite Christians and Druse)
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Nabatiye
(Muslims, Shiites and Christians)
LEBANON
La mezquita Mohammad Al Amin en Beirut, Líbano
