--- title: "Where are military personnel, civil servants and retirees in the holiday season activity? | Ghazi Mahmoud" url: https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/2025-12-17-e16789/ lang: en description: "As preparations continue to celebrate Christmas and the New Year, the economic activity witnessed in Lebanese markets remains subdued, due to the accumulations of the economic crisis and its repercussions, as well as the damage resulting from the ongoing Israeli aggression, which continues to weigh heavily on various segments of the economy." --- [All articles](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/) # Where are military personnel, civil servants and retirees in the holiday season activity? [Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Dr. Ghazi Mahmoud](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/about/) 17 Dec 2025 · 6 min read [The Lebanese economy](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/leb/)[Politics and security](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/geo/) As preparations continue to celebrate Christmas and the New Year, the economic activity witnessed in Lebanese markets remains subdued, due to the accumulations of the economic crisis and its repercussions, as well as the damage resulting from the ongoing Israeli aggression, which continues to weigh heavily on various segments of the economy. This weighs particularly on consumers, above all military personnel, public sector employees and retirees on the one hand, and on the commercial and services sectors on the other, preventing economic activity from returning to a level that achieves sustainable growth. These accumulations have been tangibly reflected in citizens' purchasing power, prompting merchants to expect limited momentum in the markets amid the troubled economic reality the country is going through. This reality grows even more complex in light of the structural and chronic challenges facing the Lebanese economy, foremost among them the fragility of exchange rate stability, the ongoing banking sector crisis, and the unstable security situation, which contributes to curbing both foreign and domestic investment. By contrast, hopes for economic recovery persist, driven by the tourism and consumption sectors, even though gross domestic product recorded a contraction of 7.1% in 2024, amid World Bank forecasts of growth reaching 4.7%, while Bank Audi estimates raise this rate to 5%, marking the first positive growth since 2017. These positive indicators come at a time when none of the economic reforms that were supposed to drive the national economy and act as catalysts for growth have been achieved. Meanwhile, what has been accomplished in amending the Banking Secrecy Law and passing the law on addressing the status of banks remains unenforceable until the Financial Regularisation Law is enacted. On the other hand, the tourism sector alone witnessed a qualitative leap and a tangible revival last summer, defying the threats of war constantly brandished by the Israeli enemy. The number of tourists recorded last August reached 397,000, whereas during the same period in 2024 their number was limited to 247,000 tourists, meaning that the increase in tourist numbers reached 60%. This confirms the success of the 2025 tourist season, despite the accompanying risks of the repercussions of the Israeli-Iranian confrontation on Lebanon, which curtailed the turnout of Gulf nationals coming to Lebanon. Passenger arrivals through Rafic Hariri International Airport, which recorded more than 223,000 arrivals during November, constitute an encouraging indicator, while their numbers increased noticeably during the first week of December, ranging between 8,000 and 10,000 arrivals per day. These arrival numbers are set to rise as the holidays approach and airlines increase the number of their flights to Lebanon starting this week, reaching nearly 18,000 arrivals. This underscores the importance of the tourism sector for the economy and its prosperity, given the injection of foreign currency it provides into the Lebanese economy, especially since Lebanon needs hard currency inflows amid the difficult phase the country is going through, from reconstruction requirements to financing various economic activities. Meanwhile, the impact of a thriving tourism sector on the ordinary citizen remains limited, because its revenues do not reach citizens directly, going instead to tourism enterprises such as airlines, tourist resorts, swimming pools, hotels, restaurants, car rental companies and others. Although streets in general, and markets in particular, have once again begun attracting citizens and tourists, some strolling to enjoy the decorations and festive cheer, and others visiting shops to take advantage of discounts despite the difficult circumstances, commercial activity remains subdued in shops and department stores, even if it has risen noticeably in upscale restaurants, car rental demand and hotel bookings by expatriates. Indeed, sustainable economic growth cannot be achieved by relying on short and fragile tourist seasons, as holiday seasons last no more than a few days, and the same applies to the summer season, while Israeli threats render them fragile and limit turnout. Consequently, the need arises to build a balanced and integrated economic cycle based on strengthening productive sectors and working towards their integration, so that flourishing tourism activity serves as a complement to the rest of the economic sectors rather than a substitute for them or the sole pillar of growth. However, this economic cycle remains incomplete due to the absence of the role of one of its fundamental pillars, namely low-income earners and holders of modest savings deposited in banks. Depositors remain deprived of their right to dispose of their deposits amid monetary policies incapable of offering structural solutions to the existing crisis. Measures issued by Banque du Liban have been limited to raising monthly withdrawal ceilings on the condition that the increase is spent via bank cards, reflecting a stopgap approach that falls short of addressing the financial and monetary crisis comprehensively. As for the salaries of public sector employees, both civilian and military, as well as retirees, they appear to be in no better shape than frozen bank deposits. Despite repeated demands for salary adjustments and the official pledges that accompanied them, the 2026 draft budget included no appropriations allocated to the raises that were supposed to be approved during the coming year. By contrast, a striking paradox emerges in the approval of high salaries for the members and heads of regulatory authorities, at pay levels bearing no relation to the wage levels of public sector workers across their various corps and grades, a matter that not only reflects a structural flaw in the approach to wages, but also refutes the pretext that the necessary funding to adjust public sector salaries is unavailable. While the salaries of the governor of Banque du Liban and his deputies have historically constituted an exception, individually exceeding Grade One salaries in the public sector, what stands out today is the extension of this high level of pay to regulatory authorities, such that their salaries now markedly exceed those of their counterparts in other public administrations. Whereas the salaries of the central bank governor and his deputies can be justified on the grounds that they represent the monetary authority empowered to set monetary policies and oversee their implementation, this justification does not extend to regulatory authorities, whose role is confined to providing advice to the supervising minister, advice that is non-binding in nature. This disparity raises serious questions about the logic and viability of such differentiation amid a comprehensive financial and monetary crisis that demands fairer and more consistent standards in approaching public wages. The government's continued disregard for the legitimate right of military personnel, public sector employees and retirees to have their salaries adjusted, and not merely increased, constitutes a breach of one of the fundamental prerequisites for economic revival, particularly with regard to the need for an effective public administration capable of keeping pace with the requirements of such a revival. This is especially true given that these groups make up the main component of the middle class, whose stability and purchasing power form a cornerstone of any balanced economic activity. Without guaranteeing their rights, prospects for economic recovery remain unattainable, and the foundation necessary to achieve sustainable growth is absent. Translated from Arabic with AI. [Read it in Arabic](https://ghazimahmoud.com/articles/2025-12-17-e16789/) ## Published in - [Channel 23](https://ch23.com/Article/319053/أين-العسكريون-والموظفون-والمتقاعدون-من-حركة-الأعياد-؟) - [MTV Lebanon](https://www.mtv.com.lb/news/1637370) - [OZ Arab Media](https://ozarab.media/أين-العسكريون-والموظفون-والمتقاعدون/) - [Lebanon Files](https://www.lebanonfiles.com/2025/articles/باقلامهم/أين-العسكريون-والموظفون-والمتقاعدون/) ## More on the Lebanese economy [All articles on this subject](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/leb/) [19 Nov 2025 · Besieging the Cash Economy and the Suffering of the Lebanese · Channel 23, Lebanon Files ](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/2025-11-19-3068e7/) [5 Nov 2025 · Lebanon Has the Highest Cost of Living and the Lowest Income · Channel 23, MTV Lebanon ](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/2025-11-05-37b0f5/) [22 Oct 2025 · Between Lebanon and the International Monetary Fund: Postponed Negotiations and Incomplete Reforms · Channel 23, Lebanon Files ](https://ghazimahmoud.com/en/articles/2025-10-22-b7a259/)