Agreement to reinforce LIRA program

Proposition to make research a tax-free activity

The Ministry of Industry, the National Council for Scientific Research (NCSR), and the Association of Lebanese Industrialists (ALI) signed an agreement to supervise and manage the Lebanese Industrial Research Achievements (LIRA) program. The agreement defined a new management structure of the program that includes supervision and managerial committees, as well as a general coordinator.

The agreement aims to prepare graduation projects for engineering students applying technology and innovation to meet industrialists’ needs.

Several universities are part of the LIRA agreement, including the Lebanese University, the American University of Beirut (AUB), the Beirut Arab University (BAU), the Lebanese American University (LAU), the Université Saint-Esprit Kaslik (USEK), the Université Saint Joseph (USJ), the Notre Dame University (NDU), the Balamand University, and the Lebanese International University (LIU).

The purpose of LIRA is to offer students the opportunity to execute their innovative ideas, focusing on projects that deserve more research.

The ALI said that LIRA program is vital, since it merges industrialists’ needs with students’ capabilities to develop scientific research. The Ministry is coordinating with the ALI to remove taxes on profits from scientific research works and scientific centers. This measure is awaiting a decision from Parliament.