Libyan Oil Contracts: Negotiating The Future Generation Of EPSA

1. Libya Prior to the Discovery of Oil

During the twentieth century, Libya enjoyed only nineteen years of peace. Of only eight of the nineteen years, Libya enjoyed the fruits of its oil production.

In 1951, Libya became the first country to gain independence through a United Nations resolution. At the time of independence, Libya was one of the poorest countries in the world. The Libyan economy during the 1950s, as taught in Libyan elementary schools in the 1960s, was dependent on three products (i) Esparto, a plant that was used to make paper currency, (ii) livestock exported to Egypt and Greece, and (iii) scrap metal from the machines used in World War II.

After its independence and before the production of oil, the primary source of revenue for the Libyan budget was derived from rent payments paid by the American and British governments for the use of military bases on Libyan soil.