New project in the Bekaa entitled “Supporting production capacity of hosting communities in Lebanon” with Japanese funding

The Minister of Industry, Dr. Hajj Hassan Hussein, launched last week, a project entitled “Supporting the production capacity of hosting communities in Lebanon” which is implemented by UNIDO in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and with a USD 600,000 grant from the Japanese government.
UNIDO expects that this project will yield 300 new employment opportunities and will allow an unidentified number of small and medium industries in the Bekaa to respond to the purchasing needs of aid agencies in addition to exchanging technical skills between Syrian dis0placed and host communities with emphasis on including youth and women.  The sectors targeted include furniture, textile, and aluminum work. UNIDO’s regional representative, Cristiano Pasini, noted that host communities in poor rural areas are unable to adapt with minimum livelihood requirements and, as such, UNIDO will support the production capacities of industrialists in this area and will allow them to reach various markets.  The Minister spoke about the impact of the Syrian crisis especially on the industrial sector and noted that the project will help this sector through rehabilitating and equipping some small and medium industries in the Bekaa.
Source: Al-Nahar, Al-Diyar, Al-Akhbar, Al-Safir 30 June 2014