Area Size: 1,939 Km2
Population: 448,376 (2016)
Districts: Jbeil, Keserwan, Matn, Baabda, Aaley, Chouf
Administrative Center: Baabda
Number of municipalities: 326
Number of Projects that benefited from IDAL’s incentives: 21
Unemployment rate: 5% (2011)

LOCATION AND TOPOGRAPHY:

The Mount Lebanon Governorate spans, except for Beirut, along the Mediterranean coast, limited by the North Lebanon Governorate to its North, and the South Lebanon Governorate to its South.  Its Eastern frontier borders the Bekaa and the Baalbek-Hermel Governorates.  

The governorate has an altitude ranging between 0  to 3,000 meters above sea level. It spans across different geographical characteristics, including urbanized areas, mixed rural areas, and natural areas. It is crossed by 4 rivers (Nahr el Kalb, Beirut river, Damour river, Awali river, and Ibrahim river), and is home to the Shabrouh Dam, which has a capacity of 8 million cubic meters of water.

MAIN ECONOMIC ACTIVITY:

• Industry: Mount Lebanon’s economy is mainly based on industrial activities. The Governorate contains the highest concentration of industrial firms in Lebanon, hosting 58% of the total number Lebanese industrial firms . The majority of these firms are agro-food companies (17.93%), accounting for 34% of the total number of agro-food companies in Lebanon. This sector is followed by paper and printing companies, accounting for 13.15% of industrial firms of Mount Lebanon [1].
• Agriculture: Mount Lebanon is also an important agricultural zone, albeit with lower shares of cultivated land than in regions such as the Bekaa, due to its rough landscape.

 COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGES:

• 21 universities
• 20 big investments mediated by IDAL have already been undertaken in different sectors. These investments totaled more than USD 385 million, creating more than 2,500 direct jobs, and 5,500 indirect jobs. This highlights the capacity of the region to grasp important investment projects.
• More than 12 industrial zones in Mount Lebanon, presenting important opportunities for the development of industrial projects in the region.
• Proximity to the port of Beirut, Lebanon’s largest port, presents important export opportunities for industrial projects in the region.
• Lebanese Agriculture Research Institute (LARI), a governmental organization under Minister of Agriculture that conducts applied and basic scientific research for the development and advancement of the agricultural sector in Lebanon has a main research center located in Mount Lebanon where if focuses on animal health, vaccine production, viruses, quality control, plant protection and nutrition issues. 

INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES:

• Industry: The presence of more than 12 industrial zones in Mount Lebanon and the proximity to the port of Beirut, Lebanon’s largest port, presents important opportunities for the development of industrial projects in the region.
• Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, and Plastics: More than USD 95 million were invested by 5 companies in Mount Lebanon in the pharmaceutical sector, and USD 29.3 million in the chemical and plastics industry with the support of IDAL.
• Agro-Food: the proximity of the Mount Lebanon governorate to important national agricultural areas such as the Bekaa valley provides easy access to fresh agriculture produce.
• Tourism: 5 of the 9 most visited touristic attractions of the country are located in Mount Lebanon. There are 260 hotels in the Governorate, the highest concentration of hotels by Governorate excluding Beirut.