Lebanese Émigrés Increased 347% in 2021 Over Previous Year: Report

The number of Lebanese citizens who left the country in search of a better life abroad reached 79,134 in 2021, up from 17,721 in 2020, an increase of nearly 347%, according to a report published on Wednesday. It was the highest number of emigrants from Lebanon in the past five years, reported The Monthly, an online magazine published by Information International, a Beirut-based research and consultancy firm. Over the period 2017 to 2021, a total of 215,653 emigrated from Lebanon – on average, 43,131 people annually. The magazine said the dramatic increase in migration was due to the worsening economic and financial crisis in the country, rising prices, eroding purchasing power, and a lack of public services such as electricity, water, and transportation. Lebanon is experiencing what has been described as the worst financial crisis in its history. More than 70% of the population lives below the poverty line, according to a September 2021 UN report.