Beirut Economics Research Seminar Series - Dr. Eliane Badaoui

Conference Room 1617, 16th floor, Adnan Kassar School of Business, LAU Beirut campus and via Webex

The sessions feature discussions that enable participants to exchange ideas directly and critically with speakers on frontier economics research topics. They are held every two weeks during the fall and spring semesters, alternating between the LAU and AUB campuses. Attendance is open to all.

The Beirut Economics Research Seminar Series is generously funded by the AKSOB Dean’s Office at LAU and the FAS Dean’s Office at AUB.

For more information, please contact Dr. Jamal Haidar at LAU.

Title: For a Richer Understanding of Poverty in Data-Poor Countries: Evidence from Lebanon
Speaker: Dr. Eliane Badaoui
Affiliation: Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ)
Date: Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Time: 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Location: Conference Room 1617, 16th floor, Adnan Kassar School of Business, LAU Beirut campus
Online: Webex Link

About the Talk

Abstract:

This study contributes to the understanding of poverty in data-deprived countries through a comprehensive assessment of poverty in Lebanon, following the unusual sequence of crises the country has experienced since October 2019. It develops monetary-based measures using income and expenditures; two deprivation-based measures—Base MPI and Augmented MPI—with the latter incorporating previously missing dimensions of institutional and socio-emotional deprivation; and a measure of perceived poverty.

The analysis draws on unique primary data collected in 2023 through a nationally representative survey of 2,402 households. The findings indicate poverty headcounts of 31 percent based on income and 30 percent based on expenditure. Multidimensional poverty is found to be less widespread than existing estimates suggest, while measures based solely on functioning underestimate its extent. The findings also identify a significant upward gap between measured and perceived poverty.

The study further points to substantial inequality in both income and expenditure, as well as disparities across governorates and social groups. Using publicly available pre-crisis data, the analysis finds that multidimensional poverty increased significantly following the crises and that the gap between measured and perceived poverty widened threefold.

About the Speaker

Biography: Dr. Eliane Badaoui is a professor of economics at Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ) in France and is affiliated with the research unit UMI SOURCE. Her research interests lie in development economics, with a particular focus on labor, family and gender economics. Her work combines theory and applied microeconomics and has recently incorporated an experimental dimension.

Dr. Badaoui has participated in and served as principal investigator on several research projects. She is the co-founder of DEV-Connect, a board member of AFEDEV (Association Française d’Économie du Développement) and a member of the WAP Society’s expert panel. She recently joined the editorial board of the Journal of Applied Economics.