As Lebanon’s Economy Unravels, Dollar Bills and Connections Pay off

As Lebanon’s Economy Unravels, Dollar Bills and Connections Pay off

Ibrahim al-Masri wipes sweat from his brow as he queues behind two dozen other cars outside a Beirut gas station. It could take hours to replenish his depleted tank - but with no spare cash to bribe the pump attendant, all he can do is wait.

As Lebanon’s deepening economic crisis causes shortages of basic goods including fuel, medicine and even bread, a privileged few are finding ways to beat the queues and rationing by wielding personal connections, or wads of banknotes.

“I’ve seen other people give 100,000 Lebanese pounds (about $5 at market rates) to the attendant to cut in line ahead of me,” said Masri, 45, a government clerk.

“I can’t afford that,” he said, adding that a bribe of that size was equivalent to a day’s wages for him.

Even before its economy collapsed, Lebanon had one of the world’s most unequal wealth distributions. In 2019, the richest 10% owned 70% of the country’s personal wealth, according to the UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA).

At the time, 42% of households in Lebanon suffered from “multidimensional poverty”, meaning they were deprived of at least one essential service such as healthcare, electricity or shelter, according to ESCWA.

Two years since the