A Ministry of AI in Lebanon?

A Ministry of AI in Lebanon?

I almost never talk about Lebanon, but this news honestly made me laugh. There’s been a lot of noise about the government’s plan. On paper, it sounds visionary. In reality, it’s a distraction.

I didn’t leave Lebanon just because of politics. I left because I couldn’t even hold a stable Zoom call. Fiber rollout was political and patchy. Where I lived, the network was down most of the day. The banking system? Opaque, broken, and untrustworthy. Any digital business in Lebanon has to fight through systemic barriers before it can even think about growth.

That makes me one of thousands of digital refugees - people who had to leave because Lebanon couldn’t provide the basic conditions for modern digital work and life.

Lebanon still can’t deliver stable electricity, reliable internet, or secure digital services. Government websites are amateurish, vulnerable, and slow. Trust in institutions is zero. Maybe that’s intentional: you can’t bribe your way through an online system.

Until Lebanon is always powered, always connected, and able to deliver real government digital transformation with secure, modern systems - and only then open the door to genuine public–private partnerships - any talk of a Ministry of AI is a farce.

Right now, the only AI Lebanon could realistically manage is a ChatGPT Teams subscription - and even that barely stays connected.

Harsh? Maybe. But let’s not pretend we’re anywhere near ready.