Jihad El Hokayem, with "roots" that run deep in Lebanon

Ah Jihad El Hokayem is back with a wink and a nod to work past. Patriotic as ever Jihad (full disclosure: Jihad is a friend whose work I support) Jihad is touching the Lebanese flag during a social event with the words "rooted in Lebanon, open to the world" well, this give back to... This! A lovely Arabic copy if there ever one! Now that's a man who has roots that run deep in Lebanon!

Al Kafaat keynote graduation speaker is none other than Dr. Jihad El Hokayem!

 Do I recall what the late Ghassan Tueni said on our graduation in 1996 at AUB? Actually, no. But then again, I am sure the graduates of Al Kafaat will do so with Dr. Jihad El Hokayem. So voila, a man with a mission for an institution with a mission. Al Kafaat is indeed not an ordinary mission in a country where universities grew like mushroom. And Dr. Jihad is indeed a very peculiar personality with his spearheading Rethinking Lebanon (which I have mentioned several times on this blog - here and here as examples). So it is a delight that both fit indeed! Pity I am not going to be among the audience, but I am sure I will get to read the speech!

Financial Crime and Cash Economy - Rethinking Lebanon strikes again

"Ca va sans dire, mais ca va mieux en le disant" (it goes without saying, but it goes better saying it) said Charles De Gaulle: Lebanon has become a de facto cash economy. With banks holding all our money hostage, with banks doing all kinds of tricks to take money when you deposit, transfer, or withdraw (lately, they are charging 70 USD to retrieve money coming from abroad). Money transfer systems (such as OMT/Western Union or Wish or BOB Finance) have become the way people handle money as opposed to banks.
A conference about "Financial Crime and Cash Economy" is being co-organized by Holy Spirit University of Kaslik and Rethinking Lebanon (helmed by the intrepid Jihad El Hokayem) in collaboration with the Lebanese Army. This conference will convene experts to address the rise in financial crimes resulting from Lebanon's shift to a cash economy. Of course, the idea is that with very few choices the Lebanese have, what is the best way to stop money laundering and such other crimes now that cash is the most used means in Lebanon.
The conference will mainly focus areas are identifying new illicit cash flow trends, evaluating policies to boost cash transparency, improving cross-sector information sharing, and building awareness. It is to be noted that as per the World Bank the severe economic and financial crisis Lebanon is enduring is likely to rank in the top 3, most severe crises episodes globally since the mid-nineteenth century.
Experts will also examine solutions to reduce overreliance on cash, including restoring trust in banks, expanding digital payments (funny story, last time I was at my bank, I signed papers for the renewal of my card but - the person handling my application did not give me the said card, nor did I ask for it - why? Because the card is worthless at this point since no money comes into it!), implementing focused cash regulations, and incentivizing formal financial services. The goal is to advance a coordinated response that combats financial crimes while considering economic and inclusion impacts as Lebanon transitions away from a cash-based system.
The conference will be held at Jean Paul II amphitheater, USEK campus - Jounieh, on March 26, 2024 from 9:30 AM until 2:30 PM. The maximum capacity of the amphitheater is 1350 attendees in person. However, you can tune in to a live stream on zoom or dive into an immersive metaverse experience, the conference will be also covered by various media outlets and channels.

On why I envy Jihad El Hokayem

I envy Jihad El Hokayem....

There I said it.

All right, a small disclosure, I know Jihad personally. On a certain Wednesday night, in the middle of the pandemic, I wrote him a message "you are not my favorite human being tonight" - you see I was helping him fill some very complicated funding papers. But details aside, my admiration for him is boundless. Am serious.

In this wreckage that is Lebanon today, here he is a beacon of positivity - not of naivete - but of hard work, belief, support for the youngsters, and motivation for a new generation. All this anchored in an incredible humility and deep-encrusted values.

It all amazes me. And here he is again, as president of "Rethinking Lebanon" an NGO rooted in the country and focused on the youth, out with a new campaign. Sure, the country is bleeding young people immigrating either for study, or work, or establishing themselves in new cultures and countries throughout the globe. Actually a running joke is that Lebanon's biggest export is "26 year old educated people", and the sad bit is that it is true. 

And he still sees it with a positive eye. He still entices those who left to go "with a mission". Again, what's with all the crises and agitation and issues of the land, he still sees the good thing in anything. Even this, even the mass immigration of the youth of the country, he is still able to spin it under a good light, and make sure they have a "mission" to spread.

I envy Jihad.

Sakr Real Estate plays a tune people want to hear.

"Instead of freezing them at the bank, release them in a real estate".

Sakr Real Estate is selling what everyone is buying. Namely investing in real estate as a way to smuggle one's Lollars out of the bank. The problem? Ask any analyst worth his salt and he'd tell you this is not the way to go - prices are in freefall (the cash price of the penthouse in a luxury building in Beirut was offered at 85% less than its original asking as long as it is paid in cash Dollars), actually Jihad El Hokayem has long advised that prices will go further and further at a point when one can snatch three properties for what was being paid for one (actually he predicted accurately the bust of 2019 when it comes to banks).

Still, Lebanese do think it is a good investment - and Sakr is riffing on that tune and people are finding it music to their ears. 

Rethinking Lebanon: Reshaping the Future of Lebanon through Artificial Intelligence

Well, there are those who are complaining, and then there are those who are still working and trying!

Starting February, Rethinking Lebanon will start a series of webinars that covers (AI, Robotics 3D Printing, IoT, Blockchain, AVs & UAVs, AR/VR, Biotech, Deep Learning, Neural Network…). The first webinar is entitled Reshaping the Future of Lebanon through Artificial Intelligence, it will take place on February 4, 2021. The featured speakers are partners and managing directors in BCG (Boston Consulting Group) and Microsoft, the zoom platform that will be used, has a capacity to host 1000 participants, mainly university students.
Actually Rethinking Lebanon is inviting the youth to "Reshaping the Future of Lebanon through Artifical Intelligence" Webinar on Thursday February 4, 6:00 pm - 7:30 pm (EET)
Panelists:
Jad Bitar, Managing Director & Partner at BCG
Juana Fernández Silva, Director at Microsoft
Akram Awad, PhD, MBA, Principal at BCG
For Registration kindly click on this link.
Rethinking Lebanon by the way has some very worthy objectives and among the topics they discussed so far:

- Redesigning Economic sectors
- Lebanese Women 2025: Role in public services
-Rethinking the design of Entrepreneurship
- Rethinking Education for creating jobs
- Medical Education in Lebanon
- Knowledge Economy and Innovation
- Real Estate Sector: Challenges & Opportunities
And truly, they put their money where their mouth is! So far too many conferences, lectures and meetings have been organized. When reaching out to their president Jihad El Hokayem, he tells me: "Well, we can't all turn our backs and immigrate. I certainly understand why some decide to go that way. But for me, investing in the Lebanese youth is the best I can do and try to get them to remain".