Libya
Libya’s latest institutional crisis seems to have subsided. The House of Representatives, which acts as the de facto Parliament of eastern-based the Government of National Stability (GNS), has given its approval to the newly formed Board of Directors of the Libyan Central Bank. The board has been selected by the Bank’s new governor, Naji Issa, whose appointment was jointly agreed by the House of Representatives, the Presidential Council (which acts as the head of state of both Libyan governments) and the High Council of State, currently serving as a parliament for the western-based Government of National Unity (GNU). Issa’s appointment, which came at the tail end of a turbulent September, brought the country’s economic and financial apparatus back into function after more than a month of political deadlock.
By endorsing the new board, the House of Representatives also seems to relinquish its insistence over maintaining a controversial 20% tax on the exchange rate, which House speaker Aguila Saleh had put into force (with the support of the Bank’s previous governor, Sadiq al-Kabir) and which Issa had subsequently repealed after pressures by the GNU. Both Libyan governments have agreed that the new Central Bank governor should keep himself “away from politics”. Issa’s tenure therefore begins with a markedly cautious approach to fiscal and monetary policy.
Meanwhile, Italy and Libya strengthen their relations. The two countries signed eight deals on the sidelines of the Italy-Libya Business Forum, held in Tripoli and attended by prime ministers Meloni and Dabaiba (GNU). The deals include the resumption of Ita Airways flights to Libya and a new agreement for the construction of the Musaid-Ras Ajdir coastal road. The National Oil Corporation, Libya’s energy champion, also announced the resumption of onshore drilling by Eni after civil war put a ten-year stop to the Italian’s group activities in the country.
As Italy aims to consolidate economic cooperation, Türkiye’s influence in Libya waxes. Chief supporter of the western GNU during the last civil conflict, Ankara is now emerging as a key negotiator in the cautious rapprochement between Tripoli and the eastern GNS. Upon this backdrop, Saddam Haftar – son of military chief and de facto GNS leader Khalifa Haftar, as well as prospective heir to the GNS-affiliated Libyan National Army – met in Istanbul with Turkish minister of Defence Yasar Guler
to discuss military cooperation. On the sidelines of the Istanbul SAHA defence salon, moreover, Saddam met with GNU minister of the Interior Imad Trabelsi, who ranks as one of the most influential leaders in the western government.
Ankara consolidates – in parallel – its economic expansion in Libya. Saddam’s Turkish visit was followed by the signing of new construction agreements between the Turkish Silahtaroglu Construction Company and Belqasim Haftar, to whom his father Khalifa entrusted the (unofficial) control of the eastern government’s finances through the management of a Libyan Fund for reconstruction. In recent months, Ankara had already signed agreements for the infrastructure recovery of Derna, while, on the industrial side, the Turkish steel giant Tosyalı had signed – in July – an agreement with the Libya United Steel Company (SULB) for the construction in Benghazi of a direct reduction steel production plant, powered by green hydrogen and with an annual capacity of 8.1 million tons. In this context – a few days after the conclusion of the Italian-Libyan business forum – the GNU Ministry of Transport announced the reassignment of the contract for the reconstruction of Tripoli airport to a Turkish-Egyptian consortium. Until last September, the management of the works had been entrusted to the Italian joint venture Aeneas.
Download the October 2024 report
Med-Or hosted the President of the High Council of State, Mohamed Takala, to examine the current situation in Libya.
Libya’s instability, its porous borders, and the country’s central position could grant Moscow a strategic asset for its penetration into the African continent and a new outpost on the Mediterranean.
In a changed international context, Italy continues its efforts to stabilise the country. By Daniele Ruvinetti
| Head of state | Mohammad Menfi |
| Head of Government | Abdul Hamid Dbeiba |
| Institutional Form | National Unity Government |
| Capital | Tripoli |
| Legislative Power | House of Representatives (unicameral, 200 Members of Parliament) |
| Judicial Power | A transitional judicial system |
| Ambassador to Italy | Muhannad Saeed Ahmed Younes |
| Total Area kmq | 1.759.540 Km2 |
| Land | 1.759.540 Km2 |
| Weather | Desertic hinterland, Mediterranean climate on the coasts |
| Natural resources | oil, natural gas, plaster |
| Economic summary | The economy depends almost exclusively on oil and gas exports, but it’s compromised by political and security instability, the suspension of oil production and the decline of oil prices in global market |
| GDP | € 40.1 billion (2023) |
| Pro-capite GDP (Purchasing power parity) | $8753 (December 2021) |
| Exports | € 33 billion (2023) |
| Export partner | Italy 21.1%, Turkey 19.6%, UAE 10.6%, Germany 9.14%, China 8.48%, Spain 7.53%, France 5.59% (2020) |
| Imports | €19.9 billion (2023) |
| Import partner | China 15.9%, Turkey 14%, Italy 8.51%, UAE 8.49%, Greece 6.09%, Netherlands 4.8%, Germany 3.45% (2020) |
| Trade With Italy | € 9,067 billion (2023) |
| Population | 7.137.931 (2022 est.) |
| Population Growth | +1,65% (2022 est.) |
| Ethnicities | Berber arabs 97%, other groups 3% (in part Italian) |
| Languages | Arabic |
| Religions | Muslim 96.6% (Islam is the official religion), Christianity 2.7%, other religions 0.3% |
| Urbanization | 81,3% (2022 est.) |
| Literacy | 91% (2022 est.) |
Independent since 1947, Libya is a country in North Africa, bordering with the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan, Chad and Niger to the south, Algeria to the west and Tunisia to the northwest. The population is about 7 million and the official language is Arabic.
After the first Libyan civil war in 2011, which led to international military intervention and the fall of the Gaddafi regime, Libya has entered a critical stage in its history, experiencing civil conflict which has also affected the rest of the region. After the signing of a formal ceasefire between the parties involved in the conflict, Libya is now heading toward a complex transition stage.
Trade between Libya and Italy amounts to $8,61 billion (2021), with a negative balance for Italy. The bulk of Italian sales to Libya consists of petroleum products, but a significant proportion is also taken up by machinery, electrical appliances and food. Italian imports from Libya mainly consist of crude oil, followed by natural gas and, to a lesser extent, products derived from the process of oil refining, chemical products, fertilisers and nitrogen compounds. Libya plays an important role for Italy, not only because its proximity makes it a “natural” oil supplier for the Italian market, but also because it is a crossing point for migration flows from Africa to Europe.
