The dynamics of COVID-19 spread: evidence from Lebanon

We explore the spread of the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Lebanon by adopting two different approaches: the STEIR model, which is a modified SEIR model accounting for the effect of travel, and a repeated iterations model. We fit available daily data since the first diagnosed case until the end of June 2020 and we forecast possible scenarios of contagion associated with different levels of social distancing measures and travel inflows. We determine the initial reproductive transmission rate in Lebanon and all subsequent dynamics. In the repeated iterations (RI) model we iterate the available data of currently infected people to forecast future infections under several possible scenarios of contagion. In both models, our results suggest that tougher mitigation measures would slow down the spread of the disease. On the other hand, the current relaxation of measures and partial resumption of international flights, as the STEIR reveals, would trigger a second outbreak of infections, with severity depending on the extent of relaxation. We recommend strong institutional and public commitment to mitigation measures to avoid uncontrolled spread.