News

US Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden chose Senator Kamala Harris as his vice presidential pick in the November 2020 elections. This makes the California senator the first Black American woman to run on a major political party’s presidential post in the history of the United States, noting, that Kamala, 55, has run against Biden for the Democratic nomination. In a brief synopsis, Harris, was born in Oakland, California, to immigrant parents from Jamaica and India. She joined law school influenced by the civil movement protests in which her father was a prominent activist and graduated from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1989. She previously held the position of district attorney in the State of California and was involved in a sweeping police reform campaign amid anti-racism demonstrations across the US. Commenting on her nomination, Biden described Harris as a fearless fighter and one of the finest public servants in the country. The US President Donald Trump on his part, told Fox Sports Radio that some men may feel “offended” by Biden’s bold decision to choose a woman for vice president. And according to BBC, Biden has been inspired in the past few months by increasing demands to pick a woman of color for the position, especially in the wake of the social unrest caused by racial injustices and police brutality against African Americans. (Al Diyar, August 13, 2020)
 

The National Gathering of Agricultural Committees in Lebanon yesterday held a meeting for various agricultural syndicates, unions and cooperatives in Nabatiyeh and the South at the Chamber of Commerce in Saida to demand cooperation with Syria to open the borders for Lebanese goods. The president of the Chamber in Saida and the South, Mohamad Saleh, warned during the meeting that the marketing of Lebanese agricultural produce is at stake. This, he explained, has been the case since the outbreak of the war in neighboring Syria which resulted in frequent closure of land crossings, the increase in transit fees and in the cost of transportation, aided with the irresponsible attitude on part of the authorities in Lebanon to resolve the issue. He pointed out that Lebanese farmers largely rely on exporting their agricultural goods through a single land crossing via Syria. Over the past years, he maintained, they have established good ties in this regard to secure the entry of their commodities to the GCC markets, as well as to Jordan, Iraq and Syria. Saleh finally called for sustaining these ties in order to rescue Lebanon’s relations with the Arab states and to galvanize the national productive sectors, mainly agriculture. (Al Diyar, July 29, 2020)
 

Al Farah Social Association, jointly with the Progressive Women Union – Shuf District and Food Heritage Foundation, organized last week a training course on food procession in B3aqleen under the supervision of expert trainers. The purpose is to empower women economically and create jobs, in addition to familiarizing them with required safety and quality standards. Around 20 women from the towns and villages of Manasef participated in the 3-day event during which they learned techniques to dry and preserve veggies and fruits, make food the traditional way (mouneh) and prepare healthy meals. On the occasion, agriculture engineer, Farah Abi Mosleh, from Al Farah Association, said the session is part of a series of activities launched in partnership with different societies with the aim to achieve self-sufficiency. She underlined the importance of similar workshops in creating jobs for women in food manufacturing, particularly the traditional Lebanese panty. Likewise, the head of the Progressive Women Union, Manal  Saeed, stressed the importance of the training course in introducing women to the criteria of food quality and safety in the preparation of mouneh recipes. To note, training will extend during the coming weeks to cover various other regions. (NNA, July 28, 2020)
 

The head of the Syndicate of Importers and Traders of Livestock in Lebanon, Joseph Kossaifi, underlined the need to support the sector, including frozen meats, recalling that it sustains the livelihoods of families of more than 50,000 workers in the sector and in the complementary transport, fodder, fertilizers and tanning industries. Kossaifi warned during a press conference on July 23, that the sector, which is one of the main sources of hard currency in the country, is faltering and should be urgently propped. While lamenting that almost half of the local slaughterhouses have closed, Kossaifi reminded that the sector is highly productive for domestic agriculture, industry, transport and health. Hence, supporting it should be a national priority, he concluded. Meanwhile, according to Al Akhbar, Qatar has announced the import of livestock worth USD 49 million from several countries, notably Syrian sheep via Lebanon during the Adha Eid occasion. The newspaper wrote wondering if exporting sheep threatens local food security, particularly that live cattle, milking cows, sheep and goats are part of the subsidized food basket. On the subject, Al Akhbar spoke to the minister of agriculture, Abbas Mortada, who stressed that exporting livestock does not jeopardize food security, but instead brings in hard currency, underlining the importance of cooperation with the GCC state. Similarly, the head of the Consumers Protection Department, Zuheir Berro, explained that exporting sheep to Qatar does not considerably disturb the size of domestic consumption, noting that the majority of the Lebanese cannot afford to buy lamb or mutton meat these days. (Al Akhbar, Al Diyar, July 23, 24, 2020)
 
 

In the presence of the minister of agriculture, Abbas Mortada, the public Green Plan institution, yesterday delivered a number of cheques to farmers who earlier applied for agricultural land reclamation. On the occasion, Mortada underlined the importance of a food security emergency plan and a parallel strategic policy for land reclamation, forestation and provision of water. He said his ministry is adamant about implementing these schemes, revealing the distribution of bank checks worth of LBP 3.581 billion to some 622 farmers. He thanked FAO for providing aid to extend cultivation, build retaining walls and water reservoirs. Mortada also announced the completion of the construction of 16 water ponds funded by IFAD and five other ponds by ARDB, to be managed by local municipalities, as well as the launch of bids to construct additional water ponds financially supported by IFAD. (Al Diyar, July 24, 2020)
 

Louna Abu Sweirih, from Gaza, the general director of the Arab Unity Studies Center, Beirut, since May 2017, will be the guest of Zahi Wehbe this coming Saturday on his program “Beit al Qassid”, Al Mayadeen channel, Al Akhbar reported today. Abu Sweirih, Al Akhbar reminded its readers, has worked at the United Nations for years before she resigned in order to express her political views free of pressure. She holds a master’s in public and international affairs from the US and an international development degree from the Netherlands. Wehbeh, according to Al Akhbar, will be asking his guest about several topics, including her outlook of a possible Arab unity and the liberation of Palestine as a persistent aspiration and goal? How she views resistance, and is it the only way for freeing Palestine. She will also speak about the reality of publishing in the Arab world. (Al Akhbar, July 24, 2020)