Land as a Cash Machine: The case of Lebanon

The paper presents a brief historical overview to help understand the processes that led to the current controversies in property management in Lebanon. The origin of property and cadastral registry with the legal framework briefly explains and addresses questions of how private property came about. The socioeconomic section looks at the main causes and impacts of the financialization of lands in post-war Lebanon, highlighting the effect of warped taxation schemes and regulations. In reviewing the historic institutional frameworks of land property and governance in Lebanon, the aim is to understand the shifting power relationships and learn from the political choices of territorial and economic planning and the implications on society, state and class formation in light of the economic crisis in Lebanon today