Elie El Khoury

Elie El Khoury is the Director of the Export Promotion Center and Coordinator of the Department of General Business at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at Université La Sagesse, where he also lectures in Microeconomics, International Economics & Trade, Survey of Economics, and Shipping Economics and Port Management. He has served as an economic consultant for UNDP, UNIDO, the UN Resident Coordinator Office, and the World Bank, leading projects in trade facilitation, sector development, and economic recovery. His work includes designing national trade helpdesks, developing joint UN programmes to support productive sectors and livelihoods in Lebanon, conducting sectoral analyses, and building market access strategies for micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises. He also worked as an economic analyst for more than three years in the Economic Research and Analysis Department at Byblos Bank. He has extensive experience in programme design, coordination with national institutions, donor engagement, and evidence-based policymaking.

Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Economics (2017), Université Saint Joseph – Lebanon
• Bachelor’s degree in Economics (2015), Université Saint Joseph – Lebanon
• Professional Certificates:

o          Preparing a Sector Export Promotion Strategy for Business Support Organizations (2025), ITC SME Trade Academy

o          Introduction to Cotemporary Geopolitics – HSE University, Coursera

o          Social Norms, Social Change – University of Pennsylvania, UNICEF, Coursera

o          Natural Resources for Sustainable Development – NRGI, CCSI, and the World Bank

o          Introduction to Neuroeconomics – HSE University, Coursera

o          The Global Financial Crisis – Yale University, Coursera

o          Oil and Gas Governance – Natural Resource Governance Institute and LCPS

o          Introduction to Geopolitics – Liban Message Academy

Teaching interests

• International Trade
• Microeconomics
• Macroeconomics
• Development Economics

Research interests

• Private Sector Development and Trade Facilitation
• Economic Recovery and Resilience in Fragile Contexts
• Oil Economics and Symptoms of Dutch Disease

Publications

• Technical Manuals & Guidelines:
• Co-drafted: Promising Export Markets, Commercial Roadmap and Requirements & Standards, LEBTRADE.gov.lb; Pre-feasibility Studies (2022), Publications and Studies, Ministry of Industry Lebanon, Market Reports, Lebanonexports.com

Policy Papers / Reports

Lebanese Oil and Gas Initiative & Norwegian People’s Aid. (2018). Guidelines for Good Governance in the Oil and Gas Sector in Lebanon. LOGI & Norwegian People’s Aid. (with BouMalhab, N., Hanna, C., under the supervision and guidance of Courson, J.)

Grants and Projects

• Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung Beirut funded the drafting and production of the Documentary: MODEL 201 Pathway for an Economic Takeoff. (with Hanna, C., and Hadchiti, S.)

Community Services

• Led the Economic Impact Analysis of Touristic event “Cedars International Festival”, engaging with Members of Parliament, local municipalities, and stakeholders to assess the economic benefits and spillover on the Caza of Bcharre in North Lebanon. (2015)