10 years of Souk El Tayeb in Beirut

Souk El Tayeb located in in Beirut Souks attracts farmers and producers from different parts of the country, every Saturday morning between 9 am to 2 pm. Vendors spread their merchandise in open air inviting visitors to taste all sorts of delicacies and traditional food products. Nicole Bassil stands before her sweets stall boasting that her products are prepared by patients with Down’s syndrome sustained by the Batroon-based ‘Assafina’ association. She maintains that the Association started collaboration with Souk El Tayeb some 9 months ago, pointing that the proceeds from the sale of sweets and handcrafts contribute to the sustainability of Assafina and boost the confidence of its partakers. One other Souk El Tayeb contributor, Pamela Chemali, disclosed to As Safir newspaper that the project which was launched by Kamal Mzawak 10 years back has evolved with time and its products are now permanently on display at the ‘Tawleh’ restaurant in Ashrafieh. The goal of Souk El Tayeb, Chemali added is to draw together farmers and producers from across Lebanon to market their rural products in the center of the capital. During the first year, she said, there were only five contributors, whereas today the number has gone up to 60 strong and is growing. Geographically, participants are distributed as follows : 25% from the Chouf area; 23% from Beirut; 22% from the North; 10% from the South; 10% from Kesrouan and 10% from the Beqaa. It is to be noted that participants in the Souk also come from diverse Lebanese, Palestinian and Syrian backgrounds. (As Safir, 15 August 2015)