News updates

The ILO launched its new study entitled “Assessment of the Impact of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon and their Employment Profile” and dealing with the employment situation of Syrian refugees in Lebanon.  According to the study, low remuneration, high unemployment rate and poor regulation of the job market, pose serious challenges to the livelihoods of both residents and refugees in the local host communities.  The study which was released last week noted that the majority of Syrian refugees in Lebanon suffer from low pay and harsh working conditions and are characterized by low education and skill levels.  The study was administered to 400 families totaling some 2004 individuals and targeted 4 geographical areas, namely Akkar, Tripoli, Bekaa and South Lebanon. Interviews which covered all family members revealed that the overwhelming majority of the Syrian refugees are youth and children and that more than half of that population is less than 24 years old.

The study revealed that the educational attainment of both women and men is almost the same and is generally low.  One third of the refugees is either illiterate or never went to school, some 40% have primary education while the percentage of university graduates does not exceed 3%.  Findings also point out to a high unemployment rate amongst refugees reaching 68% amongst women and that they were forced to look for work in view of the absence of male heads of households in most families.  But despite these pressuring livelihoods, only 6% of the total surveyed women refugees, who are aged 15 and above, do actually work.  Of the total surveyed population, most work in the informal sector with 92% working without a contract and 56% working seasonally, weekly or on a daily basis.  Only 23% have regular monthly salaries while the average monthly income is estimated at LBP 418000 and that is 38% less than the official minimum wage. Furthermore, the study revealed that, generally, women are paid 40% less than men.

The study concludes with some recommendations and guidelines to ways to address challenges facing the livelihoods of Syrian displaced and their host communities and to improve work opportunities. These recommendations include 1) regulating the job market in order to avoid further deterioration of livelihoods, 2) creating new work opportunities through programmes such as food for work, local economic development, and the setting up of emergency work centres. Recommendations also include 1) drafting policies to strengthen institutional capacities so as to protect Syrian and Lebanese workers from exploitation, 2) highlighting the need to build capacities through skills training and broadening access to available information and statistics of the job market and 3) developing new programmes that focus on women, youth and children.
Source: Al-Hayat 3 April, Al-Akhbar 4 April 2014

To read the whole study, go to: Assessment of the Impact of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon and their Employment Profile

Eco Lebanon, a tourism guide which supports environmental and rural tourism in Lebanon, was launched last week at the Horeca exhibition in Biel.  The national guide which was released with financial support from the Ministry of Tourism, and is an initiative of the vice president of the syndicate of tourist guides, Dr. Nour Farra Haddad, is considered to be the most rich and comprehensive guide on the subject of rural, natural and ecotourism, in Lebanon.  Haddad noted that the guide is important because it aims to support sustainable livelihoods of local communities, and because it is a user friendly resource consisting of 6 different color-coded sections. The green section deals with mountain climbing, speleology and biking, the blue section with rivers and lakes and their related sports, while the white section is dedicated to ski sports. The burgundy section provides information on various villages and their special characteristics including information about the location of olive presses, handicrafts, glass blowing, pottery and other tradition crafts.  The orange section is dedicated to natural resorts and trips whilst the yellow one includes online sites and information about NGOs active in this sector.
The guide also provides information about seasonal festivals, harvest dates and food specialties of certain villages, and include a listing of selected restaurants and their menus.  Haddad noted that no fees were taken from any of the sites featured in the guides and that the Ministry of Tourism covered all the publication expenses.  The guide is now available in English, will be translated into French and Arabic and will also be available as an APP for smart phones.
Source: Al-Safir 4 April 2014

The daily star newspaper published a report last week on the various types of discrimination that job seekers face on job search websites and during interviews, in addition to presenting discrimination testimonies from job seekers, recruiters and placement officers.
Hilal Khashan, a political science professor at the American University of Beirut, recalls his job seeking days back in 1984, and how he was turned out by some companies due to his religion or more particularly, sect. Khashan says that nothing has changed much in Lebanon since that date, in terms of ensuring equal opportunities for all sects and genders during the employment process. He added that although many other countries with a similar level of education have laws in place to protect women and minorities from such discrimination, the closest thing Lebanon has to legislation that prevents job discrimination is a draft law protecting identity privacy that has been awaiting further action for seven years.
For her part, Layal Nehme Matar, a placement officer at Notre Dame University in Louaize, says that some vacancies seeks male candidates, pointing to employers that request men for largely outdoor work such as civil engineering, or others that prefer their companies’ marketing staff to be female, which she suggests may be because of women’s perceived communication and organizational skills. But Matar admits that part of the reason people ask for women may be that they are often willing to work at lower salaries than men for the same work.
The report goes one to highlight discrimination identified in job search websites, pointing out to one listing on the AUB’s job site targeting alumni and students, which was recruiting for a customer service position in Shoueifat and specifying “female candidates only for logistic reasons.” In addition, one personal email from a CEO to a job recruitment agency, seen by The Daily Star, announced that the related company was looking for a candidate who “is Shiite and who lives in Da7hiyeh”. Another form of discrimination was noted in the case of Noor (25 years old), who was accepted for an interview for an internship post at a five-star hotel in Beirut, but was subsequently turned away, before the interview, because she wears a hijab.
Finally, the report also points out to the widespread reliance on “Wasta” (connections and nepotism) for entering into the job market, which in addition to discrimination, results in fuelling the frustration of many well-qualified jobless, and in pushing them to emigrate, instead of trying to confront the system. Commenting on the preceding, Jaad Chaaban, an assistant professor of economics at AUB told the newspaper that the public sector in Lebanon is the largest venue for discrimination in employment, followed by small family businesses, whereas the best equal opportunity employers are multinational companies, non-governmental organizations, and the growing IT sector, the latter is seeking young people of all social backgrounds.
Source: The Daily Star 29 March 2014

The Minister of Agriculture, Akram Chehayeb, organized yesterday a meeting to discuss the possibilities of relieving farmers’ financial burdens and protecting them from natural hazards and disasters.  The meeting was attended by high ranking Ministry staff in addition to heads of directorates.  Chehayeb reviewed the impact of frost and drought on farmers and their harvest and said that all efforts should be mobilized to mitigate the negative impact and to assist farmers in resuming their work regardless of their regional, confessional or political affiliations. He thus stressed the need to strength the work of the Ministry centrally and regionally so as to help farmers overcome the effects of natural and economic disasters.
Within the same framework, and in an independent statement, the president of the farmers’ syndicate, Antoine Hoayek, called in the government to take a decision to compensate farmers for losses due to the recent wave of frost which hit the Bekaa as well as mountainous areas a few days ago.  He also called on the Higher Relief Council as well as the Lebanese Army to undertake an inspection of affected areas in order to assess damages and needed compensations.  Hoayek criticized the Lebanese Agricultural Research Institute which failed in its duty to prepare farmers on how to deal with the frost wave and did not provide them with advance warning.  He also blamed all those who have blocked since 2005 the enactment of the law to set up a public institution for agricultural security and for protection from disasters.
On another topic, Chehayeb commended the setting up of a joint coordination committee on food security recently formed of the directors general of the Ministries of Public health, Agriculture, Industry, Economy and Environment in addition to a representative of the Parliamentary health commission while calling on the staff of his Ministry not to allow for any margin of errors regarding this matter.  He also promised to strengthen and upgrade the Ministry laboratories so that they can abide by the standards of safe agriculture according to international food safety standards.
Source: Al-Diyar, Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Diyar 4 April 2014

A free of charge English learning course kicked off yesterday at the premises of the Fekr wa Hayat in Be7hnin (Minyyeh) organized by the Civil Society Women Pioneer organization in collaboration with the “Ma3akom” social organization and with the financial support of the American Embassy of Beirut.  The aim of this course which targets local women in Be7hnine, Minyyeh, Nabi Yusha3h, Deir 3mar and other nearby villages, is to improve the cultural and scientific levels of local women.  The course will stretch over six months and women students will be provided with free stationary and will participate in various entertainment and outdoor activities and various workshops.
Within the same vein, the women branch of the Fekr wa Hayat also organization organized yesterday a large meeting at their premises in Be7hnine in order to discuss ways to plan and develop activities targeting rural women as well as evaluating the activities related to empowering Syrian and Lebanese women which the organization is implementing also with financial support from the American Embassy in Beirut.   
Source: Al-Mustaqbal, http://www.almustaqbal.com/v4/Article.aspx?Type=NP&ArticleID=612050">Al-Mustaqbal 4 April 2014

The Minister of Industry, Hussein Hajj Hassan, inaugurated yesterday the 8th edition the National Food Industry Day which was organized by the Syndicate of Food Industrialists at the Horeca annual Fair.  This year’s National Day was organised under the slogan of “create, renovate and produce”.
During his inaugural address, Hajj Hassan congratulated the industrialists for the new law just endorsed by Parliament regarding the 50% taxation reduction on industrial exports.  He called on food industrialists and all other industrialists to pursue their commitment to Lebanese standards especially food safety standards.  He warned that any mistake on that front will affect all industrialists as well as the national economy.  Hajj Hassan declared his support to the new project submitted to the Ministry of Finance and granting incentives to institutions which invest in research and development in the form of a 5% waiver.  He also noted that he will continue with his efforts to strengthen the role of industrial research institutes as well as the programme for industrial research achievements.
For his part, the president of IDAL (Investment Development Authority of Lebanon) Nabil Itani noted that the food industry sector has made a quantum leap during the past few years as its exports now constitute some 11.38% of total industrial exports.  He also noted that food industries now account for more than 18% of the total industries and absorb some 25% of total labor in the sector, whilst the food processing sector has grown between 2008 and 2012 by an annual average of 7%.
Source: Al-Safir, Al-Diyar 4 April 2014

Minister of Public Health, Wa2el Abu Faoor convened a large meeting in his office yesterday during which he discussed with his guests the mechanisms for a joint coordination between Ministries in order to safeguard the health and safety of citizens.  The meeting was attended by the Ministers of Agriculture and Economy, Akram Chehayeb and Alain Hakim, the president of the Parliamentary Commission on Health, Atef Majdalani, the director general of the Ministry of Agriculture, Louis La7hud, and the director general of the Ministry of Economy, Fouad Fleifel.  The Minister of Industry, Hussein Hajj Hassan, was not present in view of an emergency.
Following the meeting, Minister Abu Faoor announced the formation of a committee including the director generals of the Ministries of Public health, Agriculture, Industry, Economy and Environment in addition to a representative of the Parliamentary health commission in order to follow-up of the food safety issues within the framework of a clear mechanisms.  The task of the committee would be to identify risks in consumption goods and which affect consumers' health and how to assess and address these risks. The committee will seek to have a comprehensive coordination in the responsibilities of relevant ministries rather than a situation of tension and mutual accusations amongst ministers.
Abu Faoor noted that what happened with the case of Labneh unveiled the risks borne by consumers in Lebanon.  As such, the duty of the Ministries is to take action until a food safety law is enacted and also find ways to coordinate for the benefit of consumers' safety and the safety of food and medications.  Chehayeb also explained the road map he is following to address the problem of the Labneh production.  He added that the use of natamycin has been referred to the district attorney but without lodging a court case whilst awaiting the results of the investigation.  Should the investigation reveal wrongdoing, then the Ministries will take appropriate legal actions against producers who are undermining the safety of citizens.
Source: Al-Diyar, Al-Mustaqbal 2 April 2014

The Ministry of industry and UNIDO organised last week, in collaboration with the Ministries of Agriculture, Economy and Trade, a workshop under the auspices of Minister Hajj Hassan on "Strengthening Food Safety and the competitiveness of Lebanese olive oil".  The event was held in Beirut and started with a presentation by the Director General of the Ministry of Industry, Dani Gedeon, who outlined the objectives of the workshop. Participants then split into two round tables which discussed 2 topics: "Strengthening food safety" and "increasing the competitiveness of olive oil".  The first round table reviewed the current legal, legislative and institutional support, how to support private institutions, and financing mechanisms.  Lecturers included Toufic Rizk, the dean of the Faculty of science at Saint Joseph University, Fadi Fayyad, the senior business advisor at Euro-Lebanese Centre for Industrial Modernsation (ElCIM), and Khater Bou Habib, the chairman and General Manager of Kafalat.   
Participants in the second round table discussed improving olive oil quality, reviewed legislations related to olive oil, and explored ways for promoting and marketing of olive oil both internally and externally.  Speakers in the second round table included Hussein Hoteit, Tamim Takesh, and Yussef Fares.  
A concluding session was held at the end of day one during which speakers Khatib, Rizk and Hoteit shared the results of the round tables discussions and the points suggested by participants as recommendations. During that session, Hajj Hassan noted in his concluding statement that there is a need for strong coordination and collaboration between the Ministries of Industry, Agriculture, Economy and Health and so as to operationalise the training on food safety and speed up intervention strategies.  He noted that such interventions should target small and medium enterprises as well as big institutions.  With regards to the issue of Lebanese olive oil,, Hajj Hassan added that the work still needed to develop the quality of olive oil is not so big because as a lot has already been done.  He noted that addressing the problem of olive oil marketing resides in finding cooperative federation so as to gather and market olive oil collectively.  
On a related vein, Hajj Hassan reassured the Lebanese citizens during his meeting with the Lebanese Council of dairy producers that what was disclosed in the crisis related to the usage of natamycin in certain dairy products has been addressed and  the factories which were using it have stopped using it.  He added that Lebanon's dairy production remains of good quality and a number of measures will be adopted to ensure food safety especially in the dairy production sector.  He also added that the Council's members who represent 80% of the producers is committed to do an unprecedented quantum leap in the sector which will be announced soon. .  
For his part, Minister of Labour, Sejaan Azzi referred during a consultative meeting organised by the Beirut Chamber of Beirut and Mount Lebanon and focusing on the NSSF, to recent media campaign about the use of natamycin by Dairy Khoury and Dairy Day companies.  He considered that the problem was not accurately described by the media.  The President of the Beirut and Mount Lebanon Chamber Mohammad Chokeir noted that it would have been better for Ministries to undertake the necessary scientific tests before denouncing the companies and jeopardising people's livelihoods.  He hoped that Ministries which were at fault would eventually apologise to those companies negatively affected by the media campaign.
Source: Al-Diyar, Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Safir, Al-Mustaqbal 1 April 2014

The Minister of Tourism, Michel Pharaon, inaugurated yesterday the 21st Horeca exhibition at Biel.  Some 320 companies are taking part in this event which includes some 2000 trademarks from several countries namely Lebanon, Australia, France, the Netherlands, Iran, Italy, Jordan, Oman, Poland, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and the United States of America.  The event has attracted large participation despite the generally difficult economic, political and security situation in the country and in the region and as indicated in the statement issued by the organiser, Hospitality Services. The exhibition will be open until 4 April 2014 and will provide promotional and marketing opportunities for exhibitors and producers through the pavilions allocated for food and beverages and others allocated for equipment for food and raw material production.  Hotels and restaurants are also participating in the event which also includes the holding of more than 13 workshops daily and 10 competitions to award creativity and innovation and that will be overseen by 500 chefs, local and international experts.
Source: Al-Diyar, Al-Safir 2 April 2014
 

The Municipality of Tripoli honored the staff and workers at the municipality during a celebratory lunch organised on the occasion of mothers' day.  The event was attended by the head of the federation of municipalities of Al-Fayhaa Nader Al Ghazal as well as members of the municipal councils and women staff and workers.  Firas Hamza spoke on behalf of staff and reiterated the important role that women play in our society.
Nader Ghazal said that "all of us are aware of the role that his sister and every woman plays and their responsibility which exceeds that of fathers in raising the new generation".  He added that on this occasion, he compares the Municipality to a mother who taught her children the art to manage and to mobilise allegiance and, as mothers do, the Municipality teaches her children and cares for them and encourages them to raise their education. 

Source: Al Mustaqbal 30 March 2014