LAU Economic Policy Talk Series: Bridging Academia with Policy Making

Apr 22, 2025

The Economic Policy Talk Series, which ran throughout the spring semester at LAU’s Adnan Kassar School of Business (AKSOB), drew economic policymakers to campus to share their real-world experience with the LAU community. It featured a range of events focused on the integration of economic analysis and policy decisions that affect living standards in Lebanon’s increasingly complex economic landscape. The goal was to strengthen the bridge between the LAU community and financial policymakers.

Throughout the series, organized by the Department of Economics, students from various disciplines joined experts from the public and private sectors and international organizations to discuss legislation, reforms, and economic policies to strengthen the Lebanese economy. The talks featured Dr. Jean Ellieh, president of the Public Procurement Authority in Lebanon, who talked about the reform aspects of public procurement law; Mr. Talal Hijazi, general manager of the Association of Lebanese Industrialists who discussed how the industrial sector is saving Lebanon; and Dr. Niranjan Sarangi, leader of the Shared Economic Prosperity Cluster at the United Nations–ESCWA who presented a report about the debt and fiscal outlook in the Arab Region.

The LAU Economic Policy Talk Series highlighted to LAU economics students, faculty, and the broader community the lessons learned while practicing economic policy, as experts shared firsthand experiences in applying economic reasoning to policymaking.