News

Violence against women remains rampant as As Safir newspaper relayed yet another story of a woman called Feyrouz who attempted to take her life a month ago by drinking a high dose of poison.  Feyrouz could no longer withstand her husband’s brutal and incessant violence which has gone on uninterrupted for three years and led to three miscarriages. She told As Safir newspaper that her husband beats her at least once a week.  He often returns home late and drunk and starts yelling at her, then slapping and kicking her in addition to throwing various utensils at her.  Feyrouz recalls that he was not like this in the beginning.  Ever since he left his work and started living off her meager income as a worker in a dairy factory, he became violent.  According to As Safir, Feyrouz left home more than once but came back for the sake of her four little children especially since her husband started to abuse them as well.  She called on her brother for help but to no avail.  Her final recourse was her failed attempt at suicide to put an end to her suffering.

Source: Al-Safir 24 September 2014

The current Minister of Labor, Sejaan Azzi, called on Lebanese employers not to recruit foreign workers.  Azzi also told the Lebanese that they should not consider manual work as too small for them.  The Minister expressed his regrets that the Lebanese market is only able to absorb 3400 out of the 19000 young women and men who graduate every year.  Azzi emphasized the importance of vocational training for which there is an increasing demand.  Azzi was speaking at the round table organized by the French Agency for Development (AFD), which was held yesterday at the premises of the Economic and Social Council.  The event was entitled “Youth employment in Lebanon: role of vocational education and entrepreneurship” and was organized in partnership with the European Training Foundation (ETF), Marseille Center for Mediterranean Integration (CMI) and the EU delegation.
The President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Roger Nasnas, highlighted the importance of developing the capacities and responding to the ambitions of young people as well as providing them with the necessary orientation, creating more work opportunities for women, and finally focusing on family income rather than individual income. For his part, French Ambassador, Patrice Paoli, emphasized the importance of developing training programmes which create jobs with high potentials.  This, according to the French Ambassador, will require the development of specific training programmes that match market needs, enhancing private-public partnership, and further focusing on developing the informal sector.

Source: Al-Nahar, Al-Akhbar, Al-Diyar, Al-Safir 24 September 2014

According to a study done by Bayt.com on consumers’ indicators in the MENA region, participants from Lebanon expected a decline in the economy and in employment opportunities in the near future.  The results showed that 60% of participants believed that the Lebanese economy has regressed significantly during the past six months, 42% of which expected a greater deterioration of the situation during the same period.  As for the business environment, 21% of participants considered that it is good to very good, and 39% expected the situation to improve a year from now, on the opposite side 74% noted that jobs in Lebanon have become hard to get, and 37% expected a decrease in the number of employment opportunities during the next six months.
The results also showed that 69% of the participants expected a rise in the cost of living during the next six months and 60% noted that their savings have decreased compared to last years. The sales marketing at Bayt.com, Suheil al Masri, commented on these results and noted that there is an increase in the number of new projects in the Middle East region, a trend which contributes to creating jobs thus improving the general livelihoods situation.  However, he added, that this trend is accompanied by an increase in the cost of living thus explaining the decrease in household savings.

Source: Al-Diyar 23 September 2014

The Minister of Tourism, Michel Pharaon, issued last week a memorandum announcing the setting up of the Council to Develop Rural Tourism.  The Council will be presided by the Minister and the vice president will be the Director General of tourism affairs.  The Council shall include representatives of the Ministries of Interior and Municipalities, Culture, Agriculture, Environment and Information, trade unions of the tourism sector and civil society organizations, in addition to several advisors from various disciplines.  This memorandum was issued within the framework of preparations for the launching of the national five-year plan for rural tourism which will be divulged by the Minister soon. The Council is entrusted with a number of tasks notably providing general recommendations related to rural tourism such as monitoring, studying the internal and external factors influencing the sector, providing suggestions to strengthen rural tourism, developing a legal framework including tax wavering and other incentives as well as coordinating with other related private and public sector entities involved in this sector.
Within a related vein, the Minister of Tourism signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Minister of Environment, Mohammad Mashnouk, aiming at strengthening eco-tourism through promoting natural reserves as well as preserving the environment through collaboration with tourism companies and also raising environmental awareness.  The MoU notes that each of the two Ministers will designate a representative who will be assigned with the implementation of the MoU.  A bilateral meeting is stipulated once a year or whenever the need arises in order to discuss any matter related to the agreement.

Source: Al-Safir, Al-Akhbar, Al-Mustaqbal 22 September, Al-Diyar 23 September 2014

The Palestinian Ambassador to Lebanon, Ashraf Dabbour, met yesterday with a delegation including the Palestinian Prime Minister Consultant on Arab and Islamic funds, Jawad Naji, the General Director of the Indonesian Organisation, WAFAA, Ezzedine Swanto, and the Advisor to the Islamic Banks for Development and Economic Empowerment, Nawwaf Atawneh.  The meeting was attended by Amneh Gebril, member of the General Secretariat of the General Union of Palestinian Women and discussed ways of expanding the economic empowerment project specifically at the level of cooperating with Palestinian Embassy and in partnership with Arab funds financed and managed by the Islamic Bank for Development and the WAFAA organization for development and lending.
To be noted that the programme in question targets poor Palestinian families and women and seeks to empower them economically through the provision of small loans to start up income generating projects.  By the end of the meeting, Ambassador Dabbour expressed the dispositions of his Embassy to extend all efforts and facilities needed for the programme to succeed and to meet its objectives of helping Palestinians in Lebanon.
Source: Al-Diyar 23 September 2014

L’Orient le Jour interviewed the president of the Lebanese Franchise organization, Charles Arbid, who noted that the current internal crisis and the decline in tourism witnessed recently by Lebanon, has had a positive impact on exporting Lebanese ideas through the franchise concept.  He added that between 2013 and 2014, the franchise sector grew by 15% whilst Gulf countries were the main importers of Lebanese franchises.  To be noted that the franchise sector is now a significant and essential component of the Lebanese economy contributing some 4% to the GDP, that is the equivalent of USD 1.5 billion.  The sector employs some 99,000 workers, includes 1100 franchise concepts and 5500 different points of sale in Lebanon.

Source: L’Orient Le Jour 22 September 2014
 

Judge Antoine Abou Zeid issued last week a protection order for the benefit of a woman victim of domestic violence perpetrated by her husband, her son and her daughter in law in the Bekaa.  The court order stipulates a permanent removal of the son and his wife from the house. The court order also stipulates a temporary removal of the husband until he furnishes proof of having attended rehabilitation session.  The husband is also obligated to pay his wife’s rent and a monthly family allowance of LBP 400,000.

Source: Al-Akhbar 20 September 2014

The Minister of Public Health, Wael Abou Faour, launched last Friday the Maternal and Child Health (MCH) project in the Rashayya public hospital in collaboration with the WHO, Al Makassed Islamic Charitable Association, UNHCR and the EU.  During the launch ceremony, Reem Rabbah, the president of the Heath and Social department in Al Makassed, noted that the project will seek to improve the health conditions of mothers and provide healthy development for children up till the age of two.  To be noted also that the project is also being implemented in Beirut public hospital and thought the health care centres affiliated to both the Beirut and Rashayya public hospitals. For his part, the Minister of Public Health, Wael Abou-Faour noted that the key justification of this project is that remote rural areas do not enjoy proper health care services especially in terms of MCH services.  The Minister also pointed out to the high maternal mortality rate prevailing in these same areas.
Source: Al-Akhbar 20 September 2014

UNWomen launched last Friday an international campaign entitled “He for She”.  The campaign will seek to involve 100,000 men in the fight against gender inequality and in an effort to challenge discrimination, strengthen women’s role and monitor advances made in countries at the level of fostering gender equality.  The UNWomen under-secretary general, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, noted that the objective of UNWomen is to increase the participation of men and boys in efforts seeking to realize gender equality.  She added that women cannot do this alone and that it is important to include all segments of society in women’s issues.  She called on fathers, sons, husbands and brothers across the world to support women’s equality in all aspects of life.  She also confirmed the projections that by the year 2020, 140000 girls will be forced to marry while underscoring that gender equality will need 95 years to be realized if the present situation does not change.
Source: Al-Safir 22 September 2014
 

As Safir newspaper published a report on the dietary system in Lebanon especially in terms of consumption of olive oil and fish.  The report is based on the findings of a study carried out by AUB nutritionist Dr. Omar Obeid and Masters Student Carla Mallah7. The report pointed out to a decrease in the consumption of olive oil in Lebanon.  A Lebanese now consumes an average of 7.1 grams of olive oil daily compared to 43 grams of other vegetable oils (corn and sunflower oil).  According to Mallah7, this decrease is largely due to the rising prices of olive oil compared to those of other vegetable oils.  In addition, most Lebanese consumers prefer to cook in vegetable oil rather than olive oil which tend to generate a smell when cooked.  The study also showed that Lebanon is amongst the countries with the least level of consumption of fish compared to other Mediterranean countries. The yearly intake of fish in Lebanon averages 9.3 kilos per individual compared to 33.7 kilos in France and 42.9 kilos in Spain. According to the study, the reason is also attributed to the high prices of fish and the fact that fish is smelly when cooked at home. In addition, the study added, non coastal areas tend not to have fish shops. Finally, the study was concluded with recommendations by the researchers to increase the intake of olive oil and fish and to diversify nutrition sources especially since Lebanon's food intake indicators show a decrease in the consumption of grains and vegetables compared to a higher consumption of rice and potato.

Source: Al-Safir 19 September 2014