Already in financial meltdown, Lebanon endures blackouts of around 20 hours a day

Already in financial meltdown, Lebanon endures blackouts of around 20 hours a day

Concrete mixer drivers, unemployed due to the current economic crisis, block the roads with their concrete mixers and trucks around Martyrs' Square as they gather to protest against unemployment and power cuts in Beirut, Lebanon on July 06, 2020.

Mahmut Geldi | Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Lebanon is in the throes of multiple crises, as Prime Minister Hassan Diab approaches five months in office.

The small Mediterranean country of nearly 7 million people is in the midst of an economic meltdown, with fuel shortages and power cuts adding to the hardship faced by many nationwide.

The country's unemployment rate stood above 30% at the end of May, while annual food inflation has skyrocketed to around 190%.

"The only card that is remaining is the street," Henri Chaoul, former advisor to Lebanon's minister of finance told CNBC's Hadley Gamble on Thursday.

Speaking to CNBC about recent street protests, Chaoul said he does not know what the trigger is going to be, adding that the political setup in Lebanon cannot evolve. "It needs a revolution, not an evolution, to move to the next stage in our political discourse."

Power cuts across the capital city of Beirut have exceeded 20 hours a day in some areas.