Lebanon’s top military training college is highlighting digitalization to prepare officers for a future in which computerization plays an even larger role in peace and security.
At the Fouad Chehab Command and Staff College, a cooperation agreement was signed between the Lebanese Military and the Lebanese Digital Transformation Network (LDTN) in September 2022. Among the signing celebration attendees were then-college commander Brig. Gen. Hassan Jouni and General Coordinator of the LDTN professor Nadim Mansouri.
The agreement aims to improve the higher military education system so that officers can keep pace with technological development.
“The failure to lend technology the attention it deserves in various areas of life puts us on the margins of civilization, helplessly watching those who cross into the bright future in which we will not have an appropriate place,” Brig. Gen. Jouni said in a speech delivered at the signing ceremony.
“Today’s wars have become wars of technology … heavy military equipment is starting to lose its edge to a tiny electronic chip.”
Digitalization is happening not just in the military but also throughout most branches of government. For instance, during the COVID-19 pandemic, governments with established digital systems and infrastructure were better positioned to track the spread of the disease and provide aid to citizens.
Many experts called upon the government to accelerate digitalization of the Lebanese economy to address the country’s ongoing economic crisis. In 2003, the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform in Lebanon, in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme, developed an ambitious national e-strategy funded by international donors and aimed at promoting e-government in Lebanon.
Lebanon has made noticeable progress in promoting e-government. Many state employees have been trained to use the latest information and communication technology, and internal networks for several government institutions have been created. Sources: Al Nahar, Lebanese Army