News

The local Daily Star newspaper published a feature today on the growing demand by consumers on reportedly pesticide-free and healthy organic products as compared to their traditional counterparts. In order to get more insight on the subject, the newspaper interviewed a number of nutrition experts who explained their viewpoints. Bassima Rida, for example, said it is “difficult to determine if such products are really organic in the absence of market control.” Likewise, the president of the Farmers Association in South Lebanon, Ramez Osseiran, indicated that there is “no way to produce all these amounts of organic products that we see in the shops here, especially when we know that they require special ingredients that we do not have in the soil of Lebanon or even in most lands around the world.” Similarly, the head of the Lebanese Farmers Association, Tony Howayek, explained that since “there is no proper regulation of such goods, anyone can sell them as organic and at high prices.” He disclosed that after a visit by economy ministry reps to the famous Souk El Tayeb market that sells organic products and testing samples of their displayed goods, “they found deposits that made them non-organic. Meanwhile, organic agriculture specialist, Haifa Abbas, considered that while the Italian controlled Mediterranean Institute of Certification (IMC) provides control and certification of organic farming products, “they are not doing their job properly.” She said IMC experts do not make regular visits and that the tests done are not up to international standards. (Daily Star, March 5, 2016)

 

In cooperation with the International Arab Forum and the Beirut Bar Association, the International Bar Association organized last week a conference entitled ‘women lawyers in the business sector’ aimed at women’s empowerment as well as the development of their professional skills, domestically and abroad. The conference focused on the latest trends in global trade disputes and ways to improve the capacities of building networks between lawyers in the region and around the world. On the occasion, the founding president of the Arab International Women’s Forum (AIWF), Haifa Fahum Kilani, underlined the importance of the above assembly in “raising awareness on relevant international standards and in encouraging women lawyers to assume senior leadership positions.” Participants also discussed existing opportunities that allow the practice of Lebanese women lawyers across the borders and how to transcend the national into the global practice, including procedures dealing with international arbitrary cross-border trade contracts and frameworks of fighting corruption on both the national and international levels. (Al Mustaqbal, March 6, 2016)

 

In its issue of yesterday, As Safir daily highlighted the experience of Rindala Jabbur, a woman member in the Free Patriotic Movement (Tayyar), for being the youngest political bureau member in the country and the second in the Tayyar’s political council after Mireille Aoun Hashem. Coming from the West Beqaa town of Ammeeq, the woman activist and journalism graduate, who just turned 30, disclosed to As Safir that she has run for the party’s political bureau elections for three reasons. Firstly, because she is a woman, and that General Michel Aoun, head of the Tayyar, is a staunch women advocate, secondly, because she seeks to bring in the spirit of youth in partisan work in Lebanon, and thirdly, because as a journalist, this helps her to properly communicate her political message. On her experience with the Tayyar, Jabbur told the newspaper that her political preferences have awakened when she was still a high school student and grown with her throughout her years in college. Elaborating on her political and professional life, Jabbur recalled her participation in the FPM rallies on the streets since 2002, and later on in the university campus and in the central information committee, up to her post as a Tayyar’s information officer in the West Beqaa constituency. This, she added, besides her work as a reporter and anchor of ‘haki baladi’ program at Radio Sawt al Mada, and also as an instructor since 2009 at the International Lebanese University and the Lebanese University. Jabbur finally mentioned that she had accompanied General Aoun in two of his complex trips to Iran and Syria, and recently published her first novel entitled ‘Ayla’ for which she won UNESCO’s first prize of reading. (As Safir, March 5, 2016)

 

The Minister of Trade and Economy, Dr. Alan Hakim, disclosed after a meeting with the European Union Ambassador to Lebanon, Christina Lassen, that discussions centered on relations between Lebanon and the EU and on clarifying certain areas of cooperation between the two parties. Hakim said the meeting comes as part of ongoing consultations related to Lebanese-European relations under the new European Neighborhood Policy Agreement, particularly in terms of facilitating inter-trade and providing access to European markets for made-in-Lebanon products. Hakim indicated that preparations for the visit next week of the head of the delegation responsible for negotiating Lebanon’s accession to the World Trade Organization were also discussed.  The meeting also delved in the EU-Lebanon cooperation in the fields of investment and improvement of the business environment in specific sectors and the significance of diversification of markets to ease potential risks on domestic economy. “Every arrangement has its pros and cons, therefore, we need to develop a comprehensive vision of the Lebanese markets and what they require. We need to identify our goal concerning these agreements so that we can negotiate accordingly,” Hakim concluded. (Al Diyar, March 5, 2016)

 

The British Ambassador to Lebanon, Hugo Shorter, inaugurated a project last week in the southern town of Bissariyeh aimed at building the capacities of women through relevant training courses. This comes as part of a joint program between the UNDP and the Lebanese Ministry of Social Affairs entitled ‘Supporting the Capacity of Syrian Refugee Hosting Communities in Lebanon’. In this respect, Shorter met with women participants in training workshops devoted to teaching the principles of safety and quality of food products. During the visit, the project national coordinator at the Ministry, Suheir Ghali, emphasized the significance of the endeavor and it role in contributing to the economic empowerment of an essential component of society, women. For her part, the technical advisor of the project, Marina Lagodich, noted the contribution of this undertaking to the creation of jobs for women only. (Al Mustaqbal, March 4, 2016)

 

In its issue of March 4, the local Daily Star newspaper shed light on the useful community activities carried out by the Korean Battalion operating within the UNIFIL forces in the village of Borghlieh, Tyre. The newspaper gave special focus to the sewing workshops which targeted women in this southern town and aim to assist them in economic empowerment. In this respect, the Korean sewing instructor, Hannah Kim, told the newspaper that her country’s brigade organizes up to four 3-month courses every year to help women acquire adequate sewing skills. One beneficiary, Rania Shehab, who got married at an early age, said that she enrolled in the course to learn how to repair the clothes for her family members, adding that she now plans to open a small tailor shop that can cater for relatives and neighbors. Another participant, Zahra Khudr, a mother of 3 children, said with pride that after completion of the tutorial, she has become self-reliant and can now mend her family’s wardrobe without outside assistance. (The Daily Star, March 4, 2016)

 

The Secretary General of the Federation of Arab Banks, Wissam Fatooh, underlined the significance of small and medium enterprises (SME) in socio-economic development. Fatooh was speaking yesterday during the opening of the second national Lebanese products and handicrafts exhibition which was organized in Hamra Main Street by the ‘Asdikaa Jiddan’ (Close Friends) association. He pointed out that developed countries, like for example, the United States, Turkey or Europe rely by nearly 90% on SMEs to boost their domestic economies, urging the banking sector to help in funding such endeavors. He noted the supportive policies of Bank of Lebanon’s Governor, Riad Salameh, and clear instructions to the local banking sector to provide increased services to this sector. “We, in the Federation of Arab Banks, are ready to assist any funding mechanism in that direction, particularly in support of to the national handicrafts and artisan industry of which we are proud” Fatooh concluded. (As Safir, Al Diyar, March 7, 2016)

 

The Pan-Arab forum organised by the Arab Labor Organization (ALO) called for supporting in-country employment offices through the proper provision, training and rehabilitation of potential workforce and the removal of restrictions limiting their efficiency and performance. The event was held under the patronage of Lebanese Labor Minister, Sajaan Azzi, under the heading of ‘Development of Employment and Vocational Guidance Offices and Enhancement of their Role in the Recruitment of Arab Youth’. Recommendations issued at the close of the 3-day seminar underlined the importance of: the following: regulating the work of such offices in Arab countries through expending their geographic in proportion with the deployment of workforce and unemployed cadres; linking employment with economic establishments and business owners organizations in order to stimulate the creation of jobs; coordinating with formal and non-formal vocational training institutions; urging Arab governments to set up an integrated labor market structure associated with the training and educational system and aimed to providing accurate data that helps identify the present and future needs for talents, skills and university degrees; developing legislations that facilitate the launching and mobilization of private recruitment offices that will be monitored by the concerned ministries and departments; and finally, providing support self-employment programs, individual initiatives and entrepreneurships, as well as develop and assist small and medium enterprises to overcome all obstacles facing their institution. (As Safir, March 4, 2016)

 

The Akkar Network for Cooperation, in coordination with Heartland Alliance International, organized yesterday a discussion meeting under the title ‘Registration of Marriage Contracts as a Religious and Social Obligation’ at Halba Town Hall. The purpose of the UNICEF supported event was to shed light on the various negative repercussions of not registering marriage contracts. During the meeting, lawyer Atiba Miraabi outlined the legal ramifications of unrecorded contracts and explained the procedures required to complete the registration. Atiba also touched on the social problems that affect families and individuals in the Lebanese and Syrian refugees communities as a result. For his part, Sheikh Bahaadinne Salam stressed in his intervention the significance and need to record marriage contracts. He warned that “not doing so could lead to major losses in rights for women, their partners, children and the whole family, and can bring about undesirable legal, social and human problems,” as he said. (Al Mustaqbal, March 3, 2016)