The World Bank commissioned InfoPro to undertake the study. The aim of the study was to assess informal enterprises in Lebanon and constraints to their growth. The study investigated the effect of the influx of the Syrian refugees on these businesses and the economy in general. The sample consisted of 1,000 in-depth face-to-face interviews with informal businesses in Administrative Beirut, Tripoli, Zahle, and Saida. The owners of the informal businesses were Lebanese, Syrian, Palestinian, and Iraqi. The interviews investigated the location of informal businesses, their infrastructure, whether they have faced security issues or had to pay for protection, their sales activity and how it has been affected by the presence of Syrian entrepreneurs / business owners, their financial status and assets, their labor force and the percentage consisting of Syrian refugees, and whether they would consider registering their businesses. The data gathered assisted the World Bank with developing policies and programs that would enhance employment and economic growth in Lebanon. It also helped in populating indicators provided by the World Bank which would assist in comparing Lebanon to other countries.
