The Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR) held a national consultation workshop in Beirut on October 1 to review and refine Lebanon’s first comprehensive National Data Classification Policy, marking a key step toward more secure and consistent management of government data.
The workshop forms part of the preparatory activities for the Lebanon Digital Acceleration Project (LDAP), supported by the World Bank’s Grant Facility for Project Preparation (GFPP). The grant funds work to strengthen Lebanon’s readiness for the broader project, backed by a $150 million loan.
More than 20 stakeholders from ministries and public sector entities involved in the initial baseline assessment attended, alongside representatives from Banque du Liban (BDL). The session was led by the GFPP Technical Unit and project consultant Dr. Maroun Jneid, who presented the draft policy and gathered feedback on its principles, scope, and proposed classification levels.
The consultation aimed to ensure that the policy reflects Lebanon’s legal and institutional context and the capacities of public entities. Participants’ feedback will inform the final version ahead of its eventual submission to the Council of Ministers.
Lebanon currently lacks a standardized framework for classifying, handling, and protecting government data. The proposed policy seeks to address inconsistent practices, regulatory uncertainty, and security risks by establishing clear classification guidelines and handling requirements across the public sector, drawing on international best practices from ISO, NIST, and the OECD.
Dimitri Stephanou, Grant Coordinator and Head of the Technical Unit, emphasized that a robust data classification policy is a cornerstone of efforts to build a modern, trustworthy, and efficient digital government. He highlighted the importance of contributions from government partners and BDL in ensuring that the policy is comprehensive, practical, and ready for implementation, and acknowledged the World Bank’s continued support.
The GFPP-funded assignment also includes an updated assessment of government data hosting and cloud readiness. This assessment will identify key risks, constraints, and opportunities to inform future work on a national cloud policy and support secure, effective cloud adoption.
The finalized National Data Classification Policy Framework will include the high-level policy, a technical framework, a control matrix, and procedural guidance templates to support consistent implementation across ministries and public entities.