Examining Lebanon's Resilience Through a Water-Energy-Food Nexus Lens

Abstract

Lebanon faces a mix of underlying political and economic challenges, shocks, and triggering events that threaten the sustainability and resilience of its interconnected resource systems. The complex nature of these pressures begs for a systems approach to better understand the existing interconnections and to support the co-creation of cross-sectoral solutions to address them. This article specifically aims to: 1) conduct a scoping review of the existing literature and current events to identify interconnections between water-, energy-, and food-related challenges as they relate to the underlying conditions and triggering events at play in the context of Lebanon; 2) highlight ways in which the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus is a useful lens through which to understand and act upon issues at different scales; and 3) identify emergent themes including decentralization and systems thinking and their roles as catalysts toward more resilient resource systems. The examination concludes with two main recommendations: first, to create platforms and opportunities for interactive resource planning and decision making to facilitate systems-thinking for top-down WEF management; and second, to empower decentralized initiatives at the local level to build resilient, bottom-up solutions to WEF challenges.

Overcoming Barriers to Energy Transition in the MENA Region: New Institutional Dynamics

“…These issues are further complicated by political instability, which imposes significant transaction costs and hinders vital international cooperation for energy reform efforts, as highlighted by Haddad [87] and Shehabi and Al-Masri [88]. Research by Ahmad et al [89] and Daher et al [90] delves into the endemic corruption and inefficiencies that plague Lebanon's electricity supply, advocating for systemic reforms through the water-energy-food nexus approach and proposing decentralized solutions as a way forward. This underscores the critical need for Lebanon to establish an independent regulator to promote investment in renewable energy sources and ensure a coherent strategic approach to the overall development of the sector.…”