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The Arab Open University (AOU) organized yesterday its first ‘Higher Education and Labor Market’ conference under the patronage of labor minister Sajaan Azzi and the presence of the general director of the National Employment Office (NEO), Jean Abi Daher, former minister Khaled Kabbani and a number of public figures. Kabbani pointed out in his intervention that the global economy aided with the development of technology, has rapidly shifted into the so-called the economy of knowledge. Consequently, Kabbani expounded, this places greater responsibility on the various universities to improve their curricula and methods of teaching to better prepare their students in the lookout for jobs after graduation amidst a fierce competition in the employment world. Abi Fadel for his part stressed that the domestic labor market cannot accommodate one fourth of graduates every year, particularly that the a large proportion of the degrees they hold are not needed by employers. “We need to study the requirements of the labor market and develop relevant legislation that help attract investments, modernize the national educational system and develop small and medium enterprises,” Abi Fadel maintained. Meanwhile, LABORA president, Father Toni Khadra, said that while 70% of state jobs are vacant, the rate of successful applicants who sit for civil service board exams does not exceed 25%. Khadra noted that against the nearly 40 thousand students graduating annually from the different higher education institutions, only 9 thousand find jobs in the country or abroad. Similarly, AUB professor Dr Maamari, stressed the need for setting an inclusive national strategy that creates uniform standards for quality assurance and surveys the domestic and Arab labor market. Finally, AOU president Fairuz Farah Sarkis presented a study conducted by the university about the extent of satisfaction of employers in the alumni of the universities in Lebanon, and which indicated that the skills of graduates are run-of-the-mill generally. (Al Mustaqbal, June 9, 2016)

 

While women advocate groups compete in holding conferences and talks to promote women participation in public affairs, the reality remains largely unchanged, dominated as always, by a male chauvinist mindset that refuses the right of women to freedom of expression. To this effect, An Nahar daily revealed in its issue of June 2, that the recent municipal and mayoral elections in the Tabaya, Saida, has prompted 7 cases of divorce in the southern town because the involved wives challenged the political views of their husbands in the electoral process. Speaking to An Nahar newspaper, one elections list supervisor confirmed the news, saying there have been informal cases, two of whom have been addressed, and three other remain unresolved.

In the same vein, the National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) concluded yesterday a seminar entitled, ‘The role of the media in human development and the realization of gender equality, working methodologies for the development of the language and change of stereotypes.’ The 2-day meeting comes as part of the EU-funded ‘Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women in Lebanon’ initiative. The covered topics included: the role of the media in altering stereotypes about women during media interviews; participation of women in public matters, decision making and political life, as well as methods of development of the media language to observe gender sensitivity. Participants finally pressed for the need to enhance the role of women across all realms and support them in the media by exposing the various development, social and political activities they undertake. (An Nahar, June 2 and 9, 2016)

 

The percentage of municipal seats won by women in North Lebanon rose to 5% compared to 3% in Akkar, 3.5% in Mount Lebanon, 2.6% in Beirut, 2.8% in South Lebanon, 1.4% in Nabatieh, and only 1% in the Bekaa thus making North Lebanon the highest in terms of women’s representation and participation.  An initial review of results of the elections which were held on May 29, North Lebanon scored highest in terms of women participation in Koura (15%), Zgharta (14%), and Becharreh (13%) whereas the other remaining Mohafazat did not exceed 10% such as Jezzine in South Lebanon. The percentages of seats won by women scored 9% for Koura, 7% for Zgharta, and 6% for Becharreh whereas it did not exceed 5.2% in the Metn Caza of Mount Lebanon.  Koura scored the highest in terms of women’s participation and winning as 15% of candidates were women of whom 61% women thus scoring 9% of the total seats.  Tripoli scored the lowest percentages with 9% women candidates of whom 12% won this constituting 1% of the total seats 

According to the data published on the electoral portal of the Ministry of Interior (elections.gov.lb/), the overall number of candidates in the South was 5939 candidates, including 539 women, out of whom 242 winning women at a rate of 4%. The distribution came as follows: Koura: 654 candidates, including 97 women, 59 winning women (9%); Zgharta: 537 candidates, including 74 women, 38 winning women (7%); Becharreh: 236 candidates, including 31 women, 16 winning women (6.7%); Batroun: 563 candidates, including 55 women, 28 winning women (5%); Akkar: 2839 candidates, including 215 women, 68 winning women (3%); Minyyeh-Danniyeh: 918 candidates, including 50 women, 13 winning women (1.4%); Tripoli: 192 candidates, including 17 women, 2 winning women (1%).

 

 

The minister of State for Administrative Development Affairs, Nabil De Freij, and the ambassador of the EU in Lebanon, Christina Lassen, launched yesterday 13 new projects submitted by several non-civil society organisations operating in the country for funding from EU-designed Afkar III program. The announcement of winning organisations was accompanied with a presentation which portrayed the progress and initiatives funded by the above program in its (Euro 10 million) third phase. It also outlined the conditions required to secure the European grants (which will cover close to 80% of the value of each project). On the occasion, De Freij, revealed that 73 undertakings participated in the transparent tender according to the European standards of assessment and selection. A specialized team assumed the selection with the participation of European observers, De Freij noted, adding that such projects cover as well remote rural areas. The third phase of AFKAR, the minister explained, aims to promote socio-economic development and reform, with focus on building the capacities of the civil society and inspiring partnerships between its constituents. Below are a selection of the winning projects:

-  A project submitted by LPHU to strengthen the role of tourism through the adoption of inclusive eco-tourism and supporting policies.

- Another submitted by the Lebanese Association for Rural Development seeks through its project to assess the needs and build the capacities of civil society organizations and cooperatives to achieve the needed socio-economic development in Akkar, north of Lebanon. This will be realized through the "strengthening the institutionalization of 65 community organizations by training and building partnerships with donors and the private sector.

- A Makhzoomi Foundation project which aim to promote social and economic development through the empowerment of civil society and motivating sustainable development in the Beqaa.

- Finally, a Family Planning Association project that seeks to promote the socio-economic conditions of women in marginalized areas in the south. (Al Diyar, June 8, 2016) 

 

The director of Civil Development Programs at the Hariri Foundation for Sustainable Human Development, Dima Hassan, wrote a feature in the Daily Star newspaper on the role of women in economy highlighting the importance of empowering women to play their key role in entrepreneurial economy. In her introductory note, Hassan cited the outcomes of a study by McKinsey Global Institute which has shown that the participation of women in the global labor market can add as much as USD 28 trillion to the global annual GDP by 2025. It pointed out that the female economy if well invested could create an economic boom, and this will reflect on their children and families. Despite efforts by some women to prove themselves in the business world, yet a great number of them remain marginalized in the labor market and face challenges that impede their productive capacities, Hassan wrote, adding that women are still not given rightful opportunities to prove themselves adequately. With only 50% of them participating in the formal work sector, Hassan stated, it is still a big waste of numerous talents and potentials that could save national economies worldwide. While she underscored the effective role of women in the entrepreneurial world, Hassan made a point that men still outweigh them in the innovation, operation and sustainability of projects, as reported by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, which added, that women have globally 40% fewer businesses than men. Finally, Hassan stressed the responsibility of all components of society towards the empowerment of women to enable them to use their full potentials. She noted that the emphasis on boosting startups and SMEs is not enough; rather there should be a comprehensive approach that will give women access to markets. (The Daily Star, June 8, 2016)

 

The USAID-funded Lebanon Industry Value Chain Development Program (LIVCD) and the Lebanese Association for Training, Education and Development (Delta) launched last Saturday the rural tourism strategy in the Mount Lebanon area of Aley under the patronage of tourism minister Michel Pharaon and the presence of the agriculture minister Akram Shehayeb. Attended by a crowd of public figures, the event was held at the premises of the Association for Forests Development and Conversation (AFDC) in Ramleyeh, Aley. On the occasion, the CEO of the Aley Development Gathering, Rami Salman, expressed hope that eco-tourism will give new perspectives for development and contribute to the steadfastness of local communities through the motivation of the economic cycle and the provision of jobs for young people. And while AFDC president, Wissam Abu Ghanem, underlined the urgency of said strategy for the revival of the local Aley economy, Delta representative, Ihab Nassr, pledged to work closely with concerned municipalities and provide the required training support. For his part, minister Pharaon  made clear that the rural tourism project is expected to increase the eco-tourism share of the overall size of conventional tourism (normally 5-6%) to reach nearly 20%, and placed great importance to such undertaking. He called on his colleague ministers to make a tour of the country to feel the richness of existing natural resources and advise on approaches to turn them into useful touristic development projects. “We used to rely on Arab tourists who visited Aley in the past, now we have to be creative and develop new forms of tourism,” he said. (Al Mustaqbal, Al Diyar, June 8, 2016)

 

While most Lebanese economic experts agree that the economy is in dire condition as a result of regional instability and other associated risks, the World Bank (WB) has shown a slight growth in the rate of real economy at 1.8% in 2016 compared to 1.5% in 2015 and anticipated a 2.3% rise next year and another 2.5% in 2018. The WB report published last week entitled ‘A Geo-Economy of Risks and Rewards’ traced the anticipated growth to a gradual recovery in the tourism sector, while noting that the socio-economic model of Lebanon is now broke. Lebanon’s large dependence on foreign remittances from its diaspora to finance internal and external imbalances, exposes the country to economic and political conditions beyond its control, the report said. Moreover, the report went on to say, the primary cause of threat to economy is the possible expulsion of Lebanese workers from Arab Gulf countries. While it made clear that Lebanon has benefited from the fall in the global prices of fuel and the consequent decrease in government subsidies to the Electricity of Lebanon Company during 2015, however, the country’s public finance system did not improve. The WB also indicated a drop of 5.4% in 2015 in foreign currency reserves at Bank of Lebanon due to slow foreign capital inflows. The anticipated future economic growth remains weak amidst political turmoil locally and in the region as a result of the Syrian war, the report revealed, warning of additional drop in the remittances of Lebanese expatriates from the Gulf which is expected to witness a decline in financial reserves and a contraction in expenditure due to falling oil prices. In conclusion, the World Bank report offered one long term solution which resides in industry and technology sectors taking the lead towards recovery. 

In the same vein, economic expert, Ghazi Wazni told An Nahar newspaper that the national economy is still standing despite stagnation. This, he said, is mainly attributed to the security situation which is still under control; high level of financial transfers from expatriates and the banking sector which continues to generate acceptable growth rates. Wazni however, did not hide his fears of a decline in the majority of economic indexes in 2016, anticipating a growth by less than 1% because of continuing damages to themain economic sectors. For his part economist, Elie Ya7shushsi raised the alarm on the state of the economy and called fro urgent government measures.

For the full World Bank report please check: http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2016/06/26412099/lebanon-economic-monitor-geo-economy-risks-reward

 

The Holy Spirit University-Kaslik School of Business and Commerce Studies organized last Friday an entrepreneurship competition  aimed at promoting the spirit of initiative amongst students and encourage them to translate their creative ideas into innovative development projects. On the occasion, the head of the School Communications and Student Exchange Department, Tina Habib, announced the opening of the ‘Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation’ in partnership with the University of Cleveland and the Lebanese Central Bank, which has so far supported many youth undertakings. For his part, the School’s Dean, Professor Neemat Azouri, pointed out that the contest represents the first stride towards the innovative world of entrepreneurship. At the end of the ceremony, participating students presented their projects in front of a jury committee.  These included the following:

a) Converting waste cooking oil into biodiesel: Students sought to produce new sources of energy, like for example, biodiesel, in order to replace conventional petroleum products. This invention attempted to generate biodiesel.from wasted cooking oil

b) U +: is an application catering to school students. It includes a database for various electronic portals of the different universities, their activities and the services they provide.

c) Seek & Match: is an application related to services in Lebanon which tries to match demand with service providers. (Al Mustaqbal, June 7, 2016)

 

The Palestinian Museum inaugurated last May 25, an exhibition named, ‘Streaks of Threads: the Palestinian Embroidery in its Political Context’ at Dar El-Nimer for Arts and Culture in Beirut. The show which is the first for the Museum outside the Palestinian territories will stay open until July 30. The original concept goes back to the late Leila Mikdadi Kattan renowned for her charity works in support of the Palestinian cause and Palestinian institutions and who worked hard to restore and revive the traditional Palestinian dress embroidery. The exhibition covered numerous creative works for Wadad Kawar and Malak Husseini with emphasis on the customary fashion of the Palestinian towns and villages that most reflect the historical roots and steadfastness of the Palestinian people to their land, despite all the attempts by the Israeli occupation to steal their heritage. The show also included paintings and artworks portraying the history and culture of Palestine before the Naqba in 1948. In this respect, Al Akhbar Lebanese daily maintained that the Palestinian embroidery cannot be interpreted outside the framework of the Palestinian women’s struggle. At the outbreak of the First Palestinian Intifada in the eighties of the past century, the newspaper said, the national flag was safely persevered in the traditional Palestinian dress, which prompted the Israeli authorities to unwaveringly campaign against its legacy. (Al Akhbar, June 7, 2016)

 

 

The Social Relief and Welfare Association in Saida- Muwassat organized a graduation ceremony yesterday for the 24th group of students of the affiliated Sidon Technical Institute for Young Women. The event was held at the Institute’s premises in the southern capital and was sponsored by Saida Mayor, Mohamad Saudi, in the presence of a group of public figures. On the occasion, Muwassat President, Arab Kalash, underlined the Institute’s determination to follow up its mission in educating young women in the various vocational disciplines and helping them participate in the development of their own city. Saudi, for his part, pointed out to the principle of partnership which is key to the success of the Association and which relies on the social and institutional efforts and the work of members of the Saida community. Saudi added: “Taking a tour inside the different departments of the institute one can clearly find that young women are true partners of the Association that took them in, trained them, and created for them new job opportunities so that they can improve their income and contribute at the same time to the accomplishments and successes of the Association itself”. (Al Mustaqbal, June 7, 2016)