Public Personnel Costs Rose by a Yearly 8% to $3.08B up to August 2015

According to the Ministry of Finance, personnel costs rose by a yearly 8% to $3.08B by August 2015. The higher spending on personnel salaries came as a result of:

• A 5% or $102.16M year-on-year increase in salaries, wages and related benefits
• A 50% increase in transfers to public institutions to cover salaries mainly due to a $63M upturn in payments to the Lebanese University
• A 5% or $35.33M increase in retirement salaries
• A 27% or $30M  increase in end of service indemnities

Personnel costs constitute the highest share of current primary expenditures (which exclude interest payments and foreign debt principal repayment), and that share has been increasing from 52% by August 2013, 56% by August 2014 and 66% by August 2015. The Ministry of Finance states that this consistent upward trend is the result of more hiring of military personnel and of lower base in current primary expenditures which fell by 14% from 2013 to 2015.

Breakdown of Salaries, Wages and Related Benefits in 2015 (In $B)

Source: Ministry of Finance