The League of Qannoubine for Missions and Heritage and the Antonine Nuns, in collaboration with the Congregation of Maronite Lebanese Missionaries, organized this past weekend a training course on the methods for proper municipal food processing, medical and aromatic herb cultivation and distillation, at the Artisan Workshop in the Patriarch’s Garden in Diman. On the occasion, Activity Coordinator, George Arab, said the training aims to develop the financial resources of rural households in order to improve their living conditions. For her part, Sister Lina Khawand, revealed that the Artisan Workshop will hold a series of workshops aiming at creating new work opportunities for local inhabitants at the Workshop itself and at the adjoining plaza which serves drinks and foods, in addition to enhancing the production and marketing of traditional mouneh. Khawand pointed out that the Workshop is in need of a new variety of medicinal and aromatic herbs for distillation purposes, namely wild roses, thyme, sage, lavender, bay and excelsa, besides the traditional crops like grapes and apples. At the end of the course, beneficiaries will receive certificates that qualify them to work at artisan shops and sell their home-made produce. (Al Diyar, October 31, 2020)