BEIRUT: More people of Lebanese descent live abroad than within the country’s borders, and far from abandoning their roots, many in the diaspora community play an important role in affairs back home.

Dr. Paul Tabar, director of Lebanese American University’s Institute for Migration Studies, says that members of the Lebanese diaspora maintain their links to Lebanon through village associations, political parties, religious institutions and charitable organizations.

In Sydney, Lebanese emigrants originally from the village of Tannourine in Batroun established a committee to build a hospital in Tannourine.

“They’ve done marvelous things,” says Tabar. “They collected enough money to add a private ward of eight beds, and [they’ll] use the money they get from private patients to fund the public hospital.”

While the engagement of the Lebanese diaspora is evident, its breadth and effects are still unclear.

“Lebanon is benefiting a lot from its diaspora, but no one has done a proper scientific study on the diaspora’s impact on Lebanon,” says Tabar.

Tabar estimates that there are 6 to 7 million people of Lebanese descent living outside of the country, but even these numbers are difficult to verify.

To understand better the effects expatriates have on Lebanese affairs, the institute is carrying out a research project called “Home Politics Abroad: The Role of the Lebanese Diaspora in Conflict, Peace Building, and Democratic Development,” which is funded by the Canadian International Development Research Center and focuses on Canada, Australia and the United States.

Marie Murray, the project’s manager, says that they have been studying the role of the Lebanese diaspora by conducting interviews with religious groups, village associations, political party representatives, ambassadors and consulates.

One of the focuses of the project is the impact of Lebanese emigrants on the political situation in Lebanon. “We examine the contribution of the diaspora, and its impact on conflict resolution or a step in that direction,” says Tabar.

He cites as an example a village in Zghorta which lacked proper drinking water. When members of the Lebanese diaspora in Australia heard that there was a problem in their hometown, they determined the cost of a project to supply the town with water and set about addressing the situation.

“Even though the project may not look political, it has a political impact. It defuses tension that could develop in the town between residents who aren’t supplied and authorities,” says Tabar.

However, Tabar admits that the contributions of the diaspora have another consequence that is less beneficial to underserved communities.

“Encouraging the state and authorities to remain indifferent to the continued development of the village reinforces political negligence,” he says.

Despite a plethora of organizations linking the diaspora to the home country, there isn’t a central coordinating body. The World Lebanese Cultural Union, sponsored by the Foreign Ministry, is tasked with this role, but Tabar says a lack of political unity makes the body ineffective.

“To our knowledge, the WLCU is divided among political lines – fragmented into three or four groups – and is turning into an ineffective, semi-state agency,” he says.

Tabar says religion provides the strongest link between emigrants and their homeland.

“The most unifying body is religion. The Maronite Church is the most organized group and a pioneer when it comes to engaging with the diaspora.”

Other religious groups have recently shown interest in connecting the Lebanese religious communities abroad with their local counterparts.

“Initiatives have been taken by the Sunni emigrants abroad, but there were no formal institutions until about five or six years ago when the mufti in Beirut sent a representative to Sydney,” he says.

In a world that is becoming increasingly connected, the role of the Lebanese diaspora in the country is likely to increase, says Tabar.

“In my opinion, this is bound to become more and more important due to the forces of globalization,” he says. “Cheaper cost of travel and cheaper means of communication are combining to make the world more integrated and interconnected, all of which is making emigrants more connected with their home countries.”