Ziyad Baroud

Ziyad Baroud
زياد بارود
Baroud during the 2010 municipal elections
Minister of Interior and Municipalities
In office
11 July 2008 – 13 June 2011
PresidentMichel Sleiman
Prime MinisterFuad Siniora first term
Saad Hariri second term
Preceded byHassan Sabeh
Succeeded byMarwan Charbel
Personal details
Born (1970-04-29) 29 April 1970 (age 54)
Jeita, Lebanon
NationalityLebanese, French
Political partyIndependent
SpouseLinda Karam
Children3
ProfessionLawyer

Ziyad Baroud (Arabic: زياد بارود /ziːˈjæd bɑːˈruːd/ ⓘ; born 29 April 1970) is a French Lebanese[1] civil servant and civil society activist. He served as minister of interior and municipalities, considered to be one of the most powerful positions in the country, from 2008 to 2011 for two consecutive cabinets in both Fuad Siniora and Saad Hariri's governments.

Baroud is one of the few political personalities who is appreciated by both ends of the rivaled Lebanese political clan and thus, subsequently holds good esteem with many of the personas across the complex and contentious Lebanese political spectrum.

An attorney by formation and practice, Baroud is an expert on issues of decentralization and electoral law reform. He is known to abstain from engaging in feudal politics, and to focus instead on building the Lebanese civil society and Lebanese civil institutions.[2] During his mandate as minister of interior, Baroud was credited for pushing forward a culture of responsibility and openness where he made himself easily accessible to all Lebanese citizens eager to share complaints and/or opinions, and was widely present in day-to-day activities of his subordinates. His actions resulted in an unpremeditated cultivation of a very attractive public image that he still possesses today.

Baroud was also credited with overseeing Lebanon's best-managed round of elections to date in 2009, which he orchestrated in one day instead of the conventional four weekends, a record in Lebanese history. This has earned him the First Prize of the prestigious United Nations Public Service Award where Lebanon was ranked first among 400 government administrations from all over the world by the United Nations Public Administration Network (UNPAN).[3]

On 26 May 2011, Baroud resigned from office as minister of interior and municipalities in Saad Hariri's government after an inter-party conflict developed between the Internal Security Forces and the Ministry of Telecommunications in Lebanon.[4]

Ziyad Baroud has been granted several awards to date, in 2010 he was the recipient of the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES) Charles T. Manatt Democracy Award, which recognizes extraordinary efforts to advance electoral participation and democratic values.[5] Baroud is also the recipient of the distinction of the French Legion of Honor or Légion d'Honneur, the highest decoration in France, ranking him as Chevalier,[6] and of the Grand Cross of the Spanish Order of Civil Merit (Sp: Orden del Mérito Civil) rewarded for "extraordinary service for the benefit of Spain".[7]

  1. ^ [1] (7 february 2021). In Journal officiel de la République Française. Retrieved on 20 november 2022.
  2. ^ Reaching Lebanon's Disenfranchised Majority. (15 April 2011). In Now Lebanon. Retrieved on 9 January 2013.
  3. ^ "H.E. Minister Ziad Baroud receives the 2010 UN Public Award in Barcelona". United Nations Development Programme Communication. UNDP. 1 July 2010. Archived from the original on 26 December 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2013. H.E Minister of Interior and Municipalities Me Ziad Baroud received the 2010 UN Public Service Award during the conference held by the United Nations in Barcelona, Spain, with the participation of representatives from more than 70 countries. Lebanon came first among 400 government administrations from all over the world.
  4. ^ [2]. (27 May 2011). In The Daily Star. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  5. ^ "The Winners of the 2010 Manatt Democracy Award Have Been Announced". The International Foundation for Electoral Systems. IFES Website. 31 August 2010. Retrieved 9 January 2013. Representative David Obey (D-WI), former United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator M. Peter McPherson, and Lebanese Minister of Interior and Municipalities Ziad Baroud are the winners of the 2010 annual IFES Charles T. Manatt Democracy Awards. The awards, which recognize extraordinary efforts to advance electoral participation and democratic values, are given yearly to a Republican, a Democrat and a member of the international community to highlight the fact that democracy work transcends political parties and national borders.
  6. ^ "Remise des insignes d'Officier de la Légion d'honneur à Ziyad Baroud". French Embassy in Lebanon Website ambafrance-lb (in French). 1 December 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2013. Le 12 octobre 2011 à la résidence des Pins, M. Denis Pietton, ambassadeur de France au Liban, a remis les insignes d'officier de la Légion d'honneur à M. Ziyad Baroud
  7. ^ Ziyad Baroud dans l'Ordre espagnol du Mérite. (12 May 2012). In Société des Membres de la Légion d'Honneur – Liban. Retrieved 9 January 2013.