Economy Ministry Launches Tender to Redevelop Rashid Karami Fair Hotel

The Board of Directors of the Rashid Karami International Fair, under the patronage of Economy and Trade Minister Amer Bisat, launched a tender to invest in and redevelop the fair's hotel, unveiling the project's terms and participation requirements as part of a broader effort to boost investment, tourism and economic activity in Tripoli and North Lebanon.

Bisat described the hotel as a central component of a wider development vision for Tripoli, alongside plans to revive the Minjara project, restore and rehabilitate the fairgrounds, and expand the site's role as a cultural and economic landmark. He said the project should be viewed within the context of a future Tripoli with an expanded port, an operational airport, a stronger special economic zone and deeper economic links with Syria and the wider region. The ministry is also working toward organizing a large-scale international triennial exhibition at the fair, he added.

Tender Terms

Fair Board Chairman Hani Shaarani said the hotel project marks the second phase of the board's investment-focused strategy, following a year in which the fair hosted around 150 events and received some 250,000 visitors. Under the tender, the successful investor would receive a 32-year operating period covering rehabilitation and operation of the hotel, would be required to restore the property, pay the fair administration an agreed percentage of revenues, and contract with an international hotel operator.

Tender documents are set to become available from mid-October, with investors given three months to prepare and submit bids by mid-January 2027. Offers are expected to be opened later that month under the supervision of the Economy Ministry and the Public Procurement Authority. Shaarani said the project was expected to create more than 100 jobs and support Tripoli's tourism economy while providing infrastructure for the fair's ambition to host larger international exhibitions.