Decision to subsidize exports to go into effect in August awaiting the details

The president of the Investment Development Authority of Lebanon IDAL, Nabil Itani, announced that the implementation of the Cabinet decision to support agricultural and industrial exports will start in early August pointing that the delay was due to a delay in publishing of the relevant decree and the absence of sufficient number of Ro-Ro vessels to transport the trucks loaded with Lebanese goods. Itani confirmed that IDAL has commissioned Lebanese shipping agencies to look for carriers in the Mediterranean countries and has assigned specialized companies to inspect the compliance of the products bound for export according with international specifications while ensuring that products are effectively of Lebanese origin. Itani expected some 200 thousand tons of agricultural produce and some 500 trucks loaded with industrial goods to benefit from the LBP 21 billion allocation over a period of 7 months, on the basis of as subsidy amounting to USD1750-2250 per truck. IDAL president revealed that until now he did receive the expected implementation decrees, noting however that the latter is ready and was signed by 18 ministers. He also noted that specialized sections in IDAL are coordinating actions, particularly those working on the AGRO PLUS program for support of agricultural exports and have extensive experience in the field.
(Al Mustaqbal, 14 July 2015)
For more information, please refer to the two news below:
- Cabinet support to farming exports welcomed but considered insufficient
- Little information on the mechanism for subsidizing agricultural sea exports