Unequal Burdens: Corruption’s Impacts on People with Intersectional Identities in Lebanon

Build coalitions and cross-sectoral partnerships: 

CSOs that work with different population groups should form intersectional alliances and collaborate on anti-corruption initiatives. The partners can pool resources, share expertise, and amplify their collective voices. IFES documented this proven good practice following the creation of the Path Coalition under the IIR project in Lebanon, where observations, member feedback, and evaluations demonstrated the importance of collaboration and experience-sharing between organizations working with different target populations: Coalition members reported that they had learned new information about different identities and population groups, and as a result of the coalition’s network-building, some collaborated with new CSO partners to strengthen the implementation of projects beyond the scope of the IIR project. 

Document and expose corruption: 

To the extent that it is safe to do so, CSOs should engage in research, documentation, and public reporting of corruption cases that affect marginalized communities. This evidence-based approach can help raise awareness, build public pressure, and inform policy decisions. 

Work with the media: 

Advocate for transparency in media ownership and funding to identify potential conflicts of interest. At the national level, implement media literacy programs to provide the public with the skills and awareness to critically evaluate news sources and recognize biased reporting. At the implementation level, work with the media to increase societal awareness around target populations and the impacts of corruption. 

Promote transparency and accountability: 

Advocate for transparency in government processes including procurement, budgeting, and decision-making. While some CSOs and advocacy groups already work to make such processes more publicly accessible, they should also support mechanisms for citizen engagement and oversight to hold officials accountable. 

Support legal and policy reforms: 

Advocate with legislators and policymakers to develop and implement laws and policies that engage groups with intersectional identities, protect their rights, and address the root causes of corruption that hinder access to those rights. This may include enhancing oversight mechanisms and promoting equal access to justice and information. 

Empower individuals and communities: 

To address the discrimination and neglect that marginalized communities often face, CSOs should educate and train members of those communities on their rights, access to justice, and strategies for combating corruption. Further, they should raise awareness among communities and households on the rights of those groups. Community-level campaigns can be led by rights-holders; for example, OPDs could initiate a public campaign that places persons with disabilities at the forefront. This would normalize their roles as active members of society, foster integration, and demonstrate that they need not be treated differently. At the household level, target the caregivers of persons with disabilities, especially girls. 

Capitalize on digital tools and social media: 

Leverage digital technologies and media platforms to disseminate information, mobilize support, and amplify anti-corruption efforts among wider audiences. Ensure digital tools are accessible to persons with disabilities. 

Engage with international organizations and networks: 

CSOs and advocacy groups should collaborate with international organizations to share knowledge, learn from comparable experiences and best practices in other countries, and gain access to resources and support. 

Recognize and include people with intersectional identities: 

CSOs should understand and address the challenges faced by individuals with intersecting identities, such as persons with disabilities, refugees and migrants, LGBTQI+ individuals, older and younger persons, women, and individuals from rural communities, who often face compounded forms of marginalization and discrimination. Ensure that programming accounts for the needs of people with intersectional identities across different aspects of activity design and implementation. Doing so will both expand reach and uptake and ensure a truly beneficiary-centered and rights-based approach to programming. 

Emphasize long-term, sustainable strategies: 

Rather than conducting short-term campaigns, CSOs should ensure that anti-corruption efforts reflect long- term, sustainable strategies that address the underlying causes of corruption and promote systemic change. As feasible at the program level, projects and activities should be inclusive of different population groups. Another best practice is to actively promote coordination and collaboration among grantees, especially those from different identity-based CSOs. 
 

Foster thorough and unbiased reporting: 

Media outlets should develop and enforce editorial guidelines in line with international standards that clearly address bias and misrepresentation, responsible reporting, and fact-checking. Journalists should conduct in-depth investigations into corruption cases, particularly those that disproportionately affect individuals with intersectional identities. They should base reporting on credible evidence and present it in a balanced and objective manner. 

Meaningfully engage people with intersectional identities in reporting and as staff: 

The media and journalists should recognize that corruption often overlaps with different forms of discrimination related, for example, to gender identity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and residence status. An intersectional approach is crucial to understanding the unique experiences of marginalized communities. The media can engage specialized local or international NGOs that can provide capacity-building and guidance on concepts of intersectionality. This can be followed by actively engaging with different population groups to 1) understand their experiences with corruption and the specific challenges they face, and 2) accurately report on their perspectives. Media outlets should also proactively recruit more diverse staff, including those who identify with multiple marginalized groups. 

Enhance inclusivity and accessibility in reporting: 

The media should avoid stereotypes, discrimination, and sensationalism, and should maintain journalistic integrity by using inclusive language and realistic imagery that respects all communities. Doing so can contribute to a more equitable media landscape that represents Lebanon’s diversity. Television and online media outlets should ensure that their content is accessible to persons with disabilities. Possible actions can include making sign language interpretation or subtitling available (at a minimum, during news segments) and ensuring websites have accessible features and easy-to-read content. 

Promote transparency and accountability: 

Media organizations should disclose their funding sources and ownership structures to build trust with audiences. At the national level, they should take a watchdog role, scrutinizing the actions of Lebanon’s ruling class, Central Bank, and commercial banks, and holding officials accountable. This includes exposing conflicts of interest and questionable decisions, and demanding transparency in public procurement and contracting. 

Support and protect whistleblowing: 

Media organizations should establish confidential reporting channels and safeguards for whistleblowers (both within the organization and externally) to encourage individuals who have information about corruption to divulge it without fear of reprisal. This is especially important to foster a culture of accountability, particularly in light of Lebanon’s current shrinking space. 

Partner with CSOs: 

The media should establish partnerships with CSOs and advocacy groups, to mutual benefit. For example, the media can support CSOs that counter corruption to improve the living conditions of marginalized groups by amplifying and disseminating their campaigns and awareness messaging. CSOs can support media personnel through training and sensitization and by providing access to community members with intersectional identities (applying Do No Harm principles) who consent to participate in interviews or town hall meetings to share their experiences. Those experiences can then be integrated into media narratives that aim to reduce stigma and discrimination. Media and civil society organizations can also collaborate to promote rights-based approaches, apply pressure on government officials, and develop joint strategies to fight corruption. 
 

Implement the UN Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC): 

Lebanon’s accession to the UNCAC in 2009 was a commitment to fighting corruption, but effective implementation of the convention remains a challenge. To fully realize its potential, Lebanon must strengthen anti-corruption legislation, establish robust enforcement mechanisms, promote public awareness and engagement, enhance transparency and accountability, and bolster its international cooperation to combat corruption effectively. 

Enhance the independence and resources of the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC): 

The Government of Lebanon should provide the NACC with adequate funding, access to capacity building opportunities, authority, and independence to conduct thorough investigations and prosecute corrupt officials. 

Improve transparency and accountability in government procurement and contracting: 

The government should implement transparent bidding processes for public contracts and ensure strict adherence to current procurement laws and regulations. The government should enforce the responsiveness of the various public departments to official requests for information in accordance with the public procurement law and impose appropriate penalties. 

Strengthen financial controls and auditing: 

The government should implement stricter financial controls and audit procedures to monitor spending and prevent embezzlement. Data about budgets and public spending should be transparent and publicly accessible, and citizens should be encouraged to participate meaningfully in financial consultation processes. 

Enhance access to education, healthcare, and social services: 

The government should strengthen the functionality, operations, resources, and infrastructure of essential services. It should ensure equal access to those services for all citizens, regardless of their background or identity. 

Promote equal opportunities in employment and business: 

The government should penalize discriminatory practices in hiring and promote affirmative action policies to ensure marginalized groups have fair opportunities in the workforce. It should also apply the relevant components of Law 220/2000, which requires companies with a minimum of 30 employees to hire qualified candidates with disabilities and ensure the provision of reasonable accommodations. 

Engage representatives of marginalized groups in the development of policy and legislation: 

When developing new legislation, policies, and strategic plans, the government should involve experts from different population groups to provide varying perspectives for consideration. It is especially important to ensure that stakeholders represent the different regions of Lebanon, particularly in light of the diverse experiences and needs in major cities or rural areas outside of Beirut. Introducing transparency mechanisms will enable engaged representatives to follow up on how recommendations were used or why they were dismissed. 

Strengthen CSOs and empower activists: 

Support CSOs that advocate for the rights of marginalized groups and promote social justice by reducing restrictions on their operating capacity and facilitating their access to funding. 

Support independent and alternative media; increase freedom of expression: 

Revise legislation associated with the establishment of media outlets to make those processes less rigorous and encourage the development of alternative, independent media sources that can provide diverse perspectives. Engage civil society in revising the proposed media draft law, and consider their recommendations to encourage rather than quash free speech. 

Prioritize projects that focus on intersectionality: 

Donors should prioritize projects that explicitly address intersectional identities across their activities – particularly in work intended to counter the impacts of corruption. This means supporting organizations that strive to understand how corruption disproportionately affects these groups and develop strategies to address relevant issues and concerns in an inclusive manner. 

Encourage sustainable cross-cutting interventions: 

Understanding that CSOs regularly invite marginalized populations to participate in a training or an activity but neglect to follow up or build on those efforts, donors should encourage their grantees to take a long-term approach to service delivery, capacity building, and empowering individuals with intersectional identities. 

Increase expenditure oversight and accountability: 

Donors should increase oversight of the expenditure of allocated funds and strengthen the capacities of any oversight bodies. This includes implementing clear guidelines for the allocation and monitoring of funding and for regular audits and evaluations to ensure funds are used effectively, responsibly, and in a manner that prioritizes accountability to supported individuals and communities.