Expatriates have played a key role in securing the continuity of the Lebanese entity since its inception, despite many antagonisms such as their exclusion from political, economic, and social decisions, depriving them of their deposits and stealing their life’s work after the economic collapse in the year 2019. On October 17, expatriates were in the forefront of the protest movements abroad and provided support for reformist groups on the ground in Lebanon. They have always considered that their alienation and displacement was a result of the economic, political and security reality that the country experienced, due to the composition of its sectarian system and the choices of the corrupt political class.

Changing Lebanon's relationship with its expatriates

Lebanon’s relationship with its expatriates must change through a systematic plan that includes the following:

• The right to effectively represent expatriates in Lebanese political life
• Facilitating and mechanizing the expatriate voting process in a way that guarantees their right to vote and the integrity of the elections
• Ensuring the independence of embassies and consulates and that they are not aligned or affiliated with any political party
• Encouraging expatriates to support the interests of Lebanon by establishing a public affairs committee in each of the countries with a significant Lebanese diaspora, to serve as pressure groups whose tasks are to support policies that are beneficial to Lebanon
• Stimulating and protecting expatriate investments in productive projects across various sectors, with the aim of ensuring their participation in developing the structure of the Lebanese economy
• Creating an electronic directory to facilitate communication between Lebanese merchants, industrialists and farmers with expatriates working in similar sectors abroad
• Establishing educational exchange programs in secondary and higher education institutions between resident students and expatriate students, with the aim of strengthening the Lebanese identity and developing students' experiences