Lebanon’s cabinet prioritises reform and economic recovery in first meeting

President Aoun calls for end of corruption and full implementation of Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire at Baabda palace

Members of the new Lebanese government at the presidential palace in Baabda, Lebanon on February 11, 2025. Reuters

Lebanon's new cabinet convened for the first time on Tuesday, with President Joseph Aoun urging the group to focus on reform.

Mr Aoun, who led the gathering at the Presidential Palace in Baabda, called for the end of corruption within the Lebanese state and the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which formed the basis of a recent ceasefire deal between Israel and Hezbollah. That deal is supposed to come to an end this month and includes the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon.

Five of the new ministers have formed a subcommittee to draft a ministerial declaration under which they will lay out the government's priorities. The recently designated Prime Minister Nawaf Salam will chair the subcommittee, and they will meet for the first time on Tuesday afternoon.

The 128-seat parliament will then convene to vote and give confidence to the government – only a simple majority is required.

Mr Salam announced his proposed cabinet on Saturday after weeks of discussions with Lebanon's political factions. Five of the 24 ministers are women.

That Mr Salam's government has been agreed upon with the support of almost all factions in parliament suggests it is expected to pass. In recent years previous attempts to form a cabinet typically failed at the consultation phase.

His new deputy Tareq Mitri will also be a member of the subcommittee. Finance Minister Yassine Jaber, perhaps the most contentious appointment given his support from the Amal Movement of Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, will also serve on it alongside Minister of Culture Ghassan Salameh, Minister of Public Works and Transport Fayez Rassamny and Minister of Industry Joe Issa Al Khoury.

Mr Aoun was elected President last month, ending more than two years of deadlock in the deeply divided parliament.

Perhaps the new government's most pressing task will be implementing the Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire, thus ensuring the withdrawal of Israeli troops from southern Lebanon.

The deal was initially supposed to expire on January 27 but was extended by three weeks with the sides concerned accusing each other of failing to implement their side of the bargain.

Other priorities will be enacting financial reforms desperately needed to help revive Lebanon's heavily battered economy. The country has been embroiled in one of the worst economic crises in modern history since 2019.