BEIRUT (AP) — Lebanon's prime minister says his country should learn from the government of Egypt how to stimulate economic growth, reform laws and combat corruption.

Lebanon's economy is struggling with soaring debts, rising unemployment and slow growth. The government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri is debating an austerity budget and key reforms with the aim of unlocking billions of dollars in pledged foreign assistance. Protests have criticized the planned measures.

Hariri spoke at a Beirut forum Thursday attended by Egyptian and Arab officials.

The government of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi has implemented structural reforms since 2014 that pushed the economy of the Arab world's largest country toward some of its highest growth rates in years. But the reforms have been coupled with an intense crackdown on dissent and major price hikes.