News updates

The Municipality of Arab Salim organised yesterday a seminar on agricultural credits supported by Kafalat.  The event was held in collaboration with Jihad al Binaa and the Ministry of Agriculture and was attended by farmers from Arab Salim and surrounding areas, in addition to the Mayor of Arab Salim, Mahmoud Hassan.  Ahmad Shamseddine and Hussein Houteit spoke in the seminar about various ways to benefit from Kafalat loans for agricultural development projects.
Source: Al-Safir, Al-Nahar 18 July 2014

An Nahar newspaper published a report about the living conditions of one of the hundreds of families living below the poverty line.  The report describes the family’s shelter, food and medical care at a time when the father is unemployed.  The mother, Manal Zeidan, 39 year old with three children, notes that her husband worked many years in collecting wooden logs but his work witnessed a setback to the extent that they could not buy food for their children.  He blamed the influx of foreign workers for his plight, as according to him, he used to make LBP 30000 a day before and now he makes hardly LBP 5000 a day.
Manal says that they benefit from some assistance from the poverty alleviation program implemented by the Ministry of Social Affairs.  She says that the card they receive allows them to register their children in public schools at no cost in addition to accessing the public hospitals.  She also thanked Druze leader Walid Jumblat for helping them repair the roof of their house a few years ago and also mentioned that the office of Minister Wael Abou Faour provides them from time to time with food and medical supplies. The report ends by wondering when would the relevant Ministries act and support such families living beyond the poverty line and ensure a decent living for them.

Source: Al-Nahar 17 July 2014

Many areas in Lebanon are renowned for traditional soap making.  Aita Shaab which is located along the southern border enjoys a wealth of laurel trees and is famous for soap making using laurel oil essences.  Laurel soap is one of the best known traditional soap which is manufactured in Aita Shaab goes back to mid last century.  Women from Aita narrate that they have learned this trade from Palestinian women who had come from Nablus.  Manufacturing traditional laurel soap is labor intensive especially that high temperatures are needed to extract laurel essences.  Women make laurel soap at home and the timing coincides with the olive harvest period.
For its part, Kura region located in North Lebanon is also renowned for its manufacture of olive oil soap.  As Safir published another report on 79 year old Michel Mansur from Koura who transformed traditional olive oil soap manufacture into a modern industry and he dedicated his time to its development after he retired.  Mansur is producing various artistic forms of soaps and is experimenting with medicinal and aromatic herbs and creating new recipes.  He is also introducing natural fragrances and colors to the traditional recipes.  However, he refuses to expand his industry and to buy new and modern equipments as he is not seeking to make profits. Mansur tells As Safir that his soap is in high demand particularly since local olive oil is finding difficulties in marketing because of competition with foreign oil. He insists on the historical and traditional values of this soap and laments that none of his children has inherited this traditional trade and he is thus afraid of its extinction.
Source: Al-Safir 16 July 2014

As Safir newspaper published yesterday two different reports on the plight of women displaced from Syria. The first article covers a Palestinian NGO initiative called “Tawassol” which is implemented by Beit Atfal Assumud and which attempts to help tens of displaced Syrian women as well as Lebanese women and Palestinian women from Syria acquiring simple skills which will enable them to secure paid home based work or work within different institutions. In the Rashiddiyyah camp in South Lebanon, tens of displaced women from Syria attend the Beit Atfal Assumud training centre to learn skills which allow them to respond to their families’ needs and expenses.  According to Doris Abu Nasser, one of the beneficiary women, “learning skills will allow women to secure income especially that the conditions of displaced women from Syria and their families continue to deteriorate and given the tightening of aid to the displaced”.  The coordinator of the Tawassol initiative in Tyre, Abeer Nawf, notes that the current training workshop benefits 15 Syrian and Palestinian displaced women and is the third to be implemented and seeks to empower women socially and economically.
The second report reflects the experience of displacement and the promises that failed to materialize through the stories of two women displaced from Syria.  The first woman called Aisha is a mother of two.  One of her children has a severe heart condition.  The family lived in the displacement camp of Marj during a period of one year and a half before she decided to return home as she realized that there is no place for her in Lebanon and death in her country is more dignified than bearing hunger, sickness and humiliation in Lebanon.  The second story is that of Umm Fahed, a woman in her fifties who came recently to Lebanon as she could not longer bear to live under ISIS although she comes from a religious and conservative family and went to pilgrimage in Mecca a few years ago.  Umm Fahed says that hunger in Lebanon is better than living under ISIS.  Umm Fahed who came with her son whilst her husband remained home to guard their house noted that “freedom is beautiful”.
Source: Al-Safir, Al-Safir 16 July 2014

Al Mustaqbal newspaper published yesterday a report about the current drought that hit a significant agricultural area notably in Northern Bekaa due to low rainfalls and the decreasing volume of ground water which supplies artesian wells especially those used for irrigation, and which has aggravated farmers in Baalbak and its surrounding areas.  According to the report, the current results are all but catastrophic and are likely to further threaten farmers, citizens and the whole country if the government and other public instances do not take concrete steps to declare a water emergency and to find alternative scenarios to overcome the current crisis which is likely to extend to next year.
Member of the farmers' syndicate, Khaled al-Zekra, noted that farmers in Baalbak and its surroundings are suffering from the unavailability of water as wells in the region have dried up by some 60% of their capacity. This has had negative consequences on the quality of their agricultural land including the Baalbak orchards which almost dried out. Zekra warned the population of the surrounding area of an upcoming drought catastrophe especially where potatoes are planted. Indeed, potato have ripened prematurely which will result in a slump in production which will reach 80% and will affect marketing and exports especially since most of the potato harvest is exported to the Iraqi market which was negatively affected by the present security situation there.
The newspaper report added that the situation in remaining regions of Northern Beqaa is relatively similar to that in Baalbak.  The supplies of drinking water have declined because many wells have dried up. Supplies of irrigation water have also regressed thus causing much burden to the population of the area. Indeed, the present situation calls for launce of an emergency plan to mitigate the impact of this disaster especially in terms of human and environmental losses.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 15 July 2014

The Daily Star newspaper published yesterday a report about a pioneer woman, Claudia Kassab Tarazi, founding partner and managing director of Retail Consulting Group, a firm specializing in the development of shopping centers. Tarazi, who has a masters in interior architecture, explained with passion the details of her profession which is still largely new in the region, adding that while being a shopping center specialist sounds glamorous, it does not come easy, especially that it is not something one can major in at university. She said the she discovered her passion while working in Dubai for Aswaq Management and Services, an affiliated company of Societe des Centres Commerciaux, a major French retail consulting and development firm that specializes in shopping centers. After that, she started planning her return to Beirut with her husband and her idea to set up a retail consulting firm.
As a new mother with a 3-month-old baby, Tarazi indicated that things have become more hectic and adjustments have had to be made. Hence, she does not work long hours for the time being, but she invests her working time extremely well. Tarazi who gets a lot of support from her husband, which she admits not many Lebanese woman are lucky enough to have, believes that personal circumstances should not be a hindrance to women who are aiming big.
Source: The Daily Star 14 July 2014

The Minister of Tourism, Michel Pharaon, declared that the national five year tourism strategy will be released shortly.  The strategy takes into consideration the internal and external context of tourism as well as the tourism of expatriate.  As such, the strategy will be comprehensive and will address the realities of tourism at all levels. Pharaon spoke during a field visit he had made to monitor a local community action involving the cleaning of solid waste carried out in the area of Nabeh el Safa and that is as part of a broader cleaning action implemented by Lebanon Mountain Trail Association in various villages within the framework of their awareness raising programme on the importance of water resources. During his visit, Pharaon insisted on the importance of ecotourism for the development of that region and especially in villages having natural water springs which provide the needed water supplies.  He insisted on the importance of water springs in supporting ecotourism and the importance of rationalizing their use.
Within a related vein, l’Orient le Jour published a report last Friday focusing on academic t study in tourism as a specialty offered by Saint Joseph University.  The newspaper interviewed the responsible of tourism sub-department at the university, Rita Zaarour, who indicated that studies in tourism will allow graduates to be able to seek jobs in tourism agencies, expanding tourism products, facilitating touristic activities, working in hotels and municipalities as well as tourism consultant in related ministries.  To be noted that this specialty is part of the geography department at the faculty of literature and humanities at the university and also allows students to pursue master’s and doctoral studies in this field.

Source: Al-Mustaqbal, L’Orient Le Jour 14 July 2014

According to a study released by the UNFPA, young Syrian displaced suffer from vulnerability at the health, educational, social, psychological, livelihood and economic levels.  According to the same source, 41% of those surveyed considered committing suicide and 53% have never felt safe and secure in Lebanon.  Their desire for death reflects their apprehension of life and the crisis they are going through.  In addition, cases of harassment and abuse are prevalent especially amongst women and girls.  This affects their mobility and encourages early marriage in addition to mistreatment as many displaced are forbidden from drinking and work more than 15 hours.  Furthermore, relations between host communities and the displaced have become more complex and tense.
The study entitled “Situation Analysis of Youth in Lebanon Affected by the Syrian Crisis” was conducted by UNDP in collaboration with UNICEF, UNESCO, UNHCR, and Save the Children and coincided with the subject of the international population day, namely “investing in youth” which is celebrated on July 11th of every year..  The study was released in Beirut last week during a ceremony which highlighted the issues of concerned and which called on governments and international agencies to place more focus on youth as they are the most vulnerable category during conflict.
Ross Mountain, the UNFPA representative in Lebanon, noted in his keynote address during the event that this study is an important report especially since the humanitarian impact on this category has not been properly recorded or addressed before.  Mountain added that the study shows that 16% of the registered displaced whose number has reached 1,070,803 in June 2014 are young people aged between 15 and 24 and have particular experiences as a result of the crisis and, as such, special intervention and support should be designed for them.

Source: Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar 14 July 2014

As Safir newspaper published a report on the numerous challenges facing wheat growers in the Beqaa especially that this year's harvest is expected to total only between 35 to 40000 tons thus with a drop of 10000 tons compared to earlier years and that is mostly due to the scarcity of rain.  Farmer Khaled Shuman noted that the Ministry of Economy and Trade has yet to issue clear instructions on the mechanism for pricing and collecting harvests.  He added that delays in delivery will force hundreds of farmers to pay for double warehousing and transportation costs which is estimated at LBP40 per kilograms and thus eroding their profits.
Wheat growers noted that the Ministry of Economy and Trade is the sole responsible for this erosion of their profits due to these delays.  The municipal head in Terbol and one of the wheat farmer of the Beqaa, engineer Fadi Khury, demands that the Ministry sets up warehouses for stocking wheat harvest in the Beqaa adding that the initial decision was already taken to set them up in village of Terbol which donated land for that purpose. To be noted that the feasibility studies for this project was completed and all that is needed is to commission the work.  Al Khury told As Safir that setting up such warehouses will mean that wheat will be delivered directly from the fields to the warehouses thus making wheat growing profitable and effective.
The report adds that the scarcity in rain water has had a negative effect on this year harvest has resulted in low productivity and increasing cost of production which have all concurred to raise production cost to LBP100,000 per dunum due to the use of artificial irrigation.  Farmer Amr al Mayyas demanded though As Safir that compensations to wheat growers be approved since they were badly affected by scarce rainfalls which is considered to be a natural disaster.
Source: Al-Safir 11 July 2014

LBCI is hosting during the month of Ramadan a daily show presented by journalist Asmaa Wehbe and entitled "Al Sayyedah" which highlights successful experiences by Arab women through interviews during which women share the strength in their journeys. Each episode has three axes namely the past, professional and personal achievements and future plans. Guests also speak about their own insights of what is happening in the Arab world.
Wehbeh notes that the idea behind the programme is to present models of women who can inspire people and societies and challenge stereotypes of women as mere seductresses. She added that this programme tries to relay the message that women are able to be leaders in their community through their achievements. The show also addresses the exclusion of women from decision making during revolutions at a time when they were active in bringing about change.
Al Sayyedah airs daily at 9:00 pm on LBCI
Source: Al-Safir 11 July 2014