The Pain Point of Lebanese Students in Rural Areas
Across Lebanon, thousands of students finish high school each year with the hope of continuing their education. But for many, the journey to higher education is shaped by something they cannot control: where they live. While universities play a critical role in expanding economic opportunities, boosting mobility, and stabilizing communities, access to higher education is not equal across regions.
To understand this imbalance more clearly, I mapped the distribution of universities across all Lebanese governorates. The picture that emerges reveals a structural challenge that often goes unnoticed.
A Landscape Centered Around Beirut
The visualization below illustrates how universities are clustered around Beirut and its surrounding districts. Baabda, Zahle, and Matn stand out with the highest shares of institutions, forming a dense academic hub that benefits students living nearby.
These areas offer abundant choices, shorter commutes, and reduced financial burdens — all of which make higher education more accessible and attainable.
Regions Left Behind
However, as we move farther from the center, the educational landscape changes dramatically. A number of northern and southern districts show extremely low—or even zero—shares of universities. Districts like Minieh-Danniyeh, Hermel, Bsharri, and Hasbaya have no universities at all.
For students living in these areas, pursuing higher education often means:
Long daily commutes
Relocation to other districts, which adds significant cost
Or, in many cases, giving up on the idea altogether
This geographic barrier creates a hidden form of inequality. Two students with the same abilities and aspirations may face completely different realities simply because of their district of residence.
Why This Matters
Educational access is more than a convenience — it shapes economic mobility, future job opportunities, and community development. When entire districts lack higher education institutions, the impact extends beyond individual students:
Local economies miss out on the vitality that universities bring
Youth migration toward central districts increases
The development gap between regions widens
These patterns highlight the importance of understanding the current distribution of universities across Lebanon, not to criticize, but to identify areas where investment could have the greatest impact.
Moving Towards More Inclusive Access
The story told by the data is clear: Higher education opportunities remain centralized, leaving many peripheral regions underserved. While Lebanon faces numerous challenges, expanding access to education is one opportunity that can create long-term, positive change.
By recognizing where academic infrastructure is lacking, policymakers, NGOs, and educational institutions can work toward:
Supporting underserved districts
Encouraging balanced regional development
Ensuring that more Lebanese students, regardless of location, can access higher education
Ultimately, the goal is simple: A country where students’ futures are shaped by their talents — not by their distance from Beirut.
In Lebanon, where you live determines much more than scenery or lifestyle, it quietly shapes the financial services you can access. For many communities, financial institutions are the backbone of how people save, borrow, and plan their futures. But what if that backbone isn’t equally strong everywhere?
As soon as we break the numbers down, the imbalance becomes unavoidable.
Some regions — like Baalbek-Hermel and Nabatieh — appear well-served, hosting the highest counts of institutions.
Others, especially the South, have only a handful, making financial access significantly more limited.
Then the story takes its first real turn when we separate banks from non-banking institutions:
Non-banking institutions dominate nearly every governorate, often by a wide margin.
This raises the dramatic question:
If banks are the exception, what does financial access actually look like across Lebanon?
The implications are real:
In regions with very few institutions, people must travel farther, pay more, or rely on informal channels.
In regions with many institutions, non-banking organizations still dominate, shaping how communities interact with money.
The struggle isn’t about having some financial services , it’s about which services are available, and what that means for people trying to manage their financial lives.
The story ends with a clear understanding:
Lebanon’s financial landscape is not only uneven, it is structurally different from one region to another.
Recognizing this imbalance is the first step toward improving financial inclusion. If we want to strengthen financial resilience across Lebanon, we must:
Address regional disparities in financial access.
Understand the key role non-banking institutions play for many communities.
Acknowledge that where people live directly shapes the financial tools they can depend on.
Ultimately, this visualization calls us to rethink how we define “financial access”, and to consider how policy, investment, and community support can bring the system back into balance.
Elsie is a young girl living in a small village in the Baalbak-Hermel Governorate. Every morning, she wakes up before dawn, brushes her teeth, gets dressed and packs her school bag. However, her journey to school is not like that of other children across Lebanon.
The roads Elsie travels on are cracked, uneven, and often flooded in winter. Can you imagine? Cold weather and muddy shoes?
For her, education feels like a distant dream, not because of lack of ambition, but because of the poor quality of the roads that connect her to opportunity.
This is not just Elsie’s story, it is the story of an entire governorate.
Poor infrastructure of roads leads to:
Town isolation: Travel becomes difficult and inconvenient whether on foot or by car.
Unsafe: Roads are not prepared for harsh weather, making them susceptible to flooding and destruction.
Unreliable: Poorly made roads will have any cracks, holes and bumps. Placing the car & those inside it in danger, if one is not already familiar with the road.
Among all Lebanese regions, Baalbak-Hermel governorate has the lowest number of good road quality. The lack of infrastructure is not just inconvenient, but a barrier to growth, dignity, and equality.
But here lies the opportunity: with targeted funding, we can transform these roads into opportunities. Where better road quality means:
Students like Elsie arrive safely and on time to their schools.
Emergency services reach families when they need them most.
Businesses see Baalbak‑Hermel not as a forgotten corner, but as a region ready for investment.
This is not just about asphalt and concrete, it is about justice. Every Lebanese governorate deserves equal access to safe, reliable roads. By investing in Baalbak‑Hermel, we are not only repairing infrastructure; we are repairing trust, opportunity, and hope.
When you think of Lebanese tourism, certain names instantly come to mind: Byblos, Baalbek, Jeita Grotto, Tyre…These iconic destinations dominate our tourism narrative, drawing visitors from around the world.
But what about the places that don’t make it onto postcards or Instagram feeds?
The digital environment in Lebanon is now as important as the physical one. Whether it’s students attending online classes, businesses relying on cloud tools, or families staying connected, internet access today is a basic necessity and not a luxury.
However, just like Lebanon’s infrastructure, internet access is not equal throughout districts. Some regions enjoy strong, stable connections, while others lag far behind, struggling with unreliable or limited access.
In order to determine which districts in Lebanon are underserved and which are setting the standard for digital access, this visualization examines the availability of internet services throughout the country.
Scatter Plot – Internet Availability by District : This scatter plot demonstrates each district’s percentage of available internet, with respect to the national average line. Blue dots reflect districts above average availability and districts with below-average availability are shown by red dots. This makes it easier for us to quickly determine who is leading and who is having difficulty.
Heatmap – Full Breakdown of Internet Status : The distribution of each district is shown on the heatmap across (Not Available, Partially Available, Available). This provides a broader perspective, showing not just the amount of internet that is available but also the amount that is unstable or unavailable.
The two images together provide a complete picture of the digital divide in Lebanon.
Key Insights
Zahle and Matn Lead the Country Districts like Zahle, Matn, Sidon, and Baabda show the highest levels of internet availability, reaching 68 – 72%.
This indicates that these regions are Lebanon’s most digitally accessible areas where there’s a crucial advantage for education, business, and services.
A Significant Gap in Underserved Districts Districts like Hermel, Baalbek, Byblos, Marjeyoun fall well below the national average with availability rates around 20 – 33%. Which indicates that these areas still face major barriers to connectivity that is affecting economic activity, education, and access to online services.
Partially Available is completely the opposite of Reliable The percentage of “Partially Available” internet is unexpectedly high in a few of districts.
This indicates that although the service is available, it is unstable or inconsistent, resulting in another kind of inequality where people have access to it but it isn’t reliable enough for everyday needs.
Why This Matters
Internet access is now tied to:
Educational opportunities
Business growth
Access to digital government services
Healthcare communication
Social inclusion
Regions with poor connectivity risk falling further behind which will increase the gap in economic and social inequalities. Internet infrastructure directly shapes a region’s ability to participate in the digital economy.
A Call for Digital Equity Lebanon needs fair internet, not just faster internet. This visualization highlights where investment is most needed. Increasing internet accessibility in poorer regions can benefit students, small enterprises, open doors, and reduce regional disparity.
“ When it comes to health, your ZIP code matters more than your genetic code ” – Dr. Tony B. Iton
The Healthcare Scene in Lebanon
Rami spent the majority of his life in Aley, Choueifat El Aamrousiyeh, a quiet town where people know each other all throughout the area. When Covid-19 began spreading in Lebanon, he assumed that his location would be relatively safe in terms of health implications. After all, the news was primarily focused on Beirut.
During peak months, Rami started hearing about his neighbors testing positive at a pace he certainly did not expect. Meanwhile, his cousin Leila, who lives close by in Kahhaleh, hardly knew anyone infected. They were both in the same region, but faced entirely different risks.
Rami’s worry and stress levels grew a lot, especially for his elderly parents with chronic conditions. If Covid spread in his town at a fast pace, would they be able to get help in time? Would testing and vaccination centers be available in close proximity to where they live? Would nearby hospitals be overwhelmed with full capacities?
Leila and Rami’s experiences reflect what many Lebanese families endure. Two households in the same region, but different towns, had completely different stress levels regarding the readiness of healthcare emergency responses.
Health Patterns in Lebanon: What the Data Reveals
We tend to think of public health at the regional level, but covid behaved more so at a town level per region. This exposed imbalances that are not usually explored. Top town per region with the highest contribution to the total national case count revealed unexpected results:
In Aley (region), Choueifat Aamrousiyeh alone accounted for 2.75% of all cases in the country.
In Baalbek-Hermel, Baalbek alone stood out with 1.33%, which is much higher than surrounding towns.
The remaining regions showed similar patterns: one or two towns carried the majority of cases.
What Does This Mean Exactly?
People like Rami, who happen to live in a high risk town, experienced a completely different pandemic from people in towns just a few kilometers away. This is likely to repeat in the future if another major healthcare crisis hits the country.
Moving Forward, What Can Be Done?
Prioritize hotspot towns: testing centers, clinics, and awareness campaigns should start where case data shows concentration, not where population is highest.
Build local readiness plans: Instead of generic region level plans, towns with higher infection percentages need specific preparation steps (rapid testing, temporary isolation centers, and community awareness).
Use data driven action plans: Covid case percentages help identify where outbreaks are likely to happen again. If regions plan smarter, hospitals and clinics face less chaos.
Strengthen communication and public awareness: Towns with consistently high rates should receive ongoing health messaging to prevent repeat scenarios.
The Key Takeaway
By understanding how Covid-19 was not distributed proportionately across towns, we can finally design smarter, more effective responses. This applies not only to pandemic/epidemics, but to any future public health threat in Lebanon.
