News

Ms. Randa Berri presented yesterday a lecture at the Lebanese University – Faculty of Information, upon the invitation of the students’ council of the faculty and the Amal party students’ body.  Berri highlighted the key and priority issues facing women namely: 1) political participation and economic empowerment, 2) challenging gender based violence including all forms of physical, psychological and economic violence whether perpetrated in the private or the public sphere, 3) raising awareness in building citizenship the constraints of the confessional system, 4) rural development and the key role of women,  5) highlighting their social contribution, 6) their right to transmit nationality 7) women’s role in environmental preservation, 8) and finally the need to challenge gender stereotypes especially those reproduced by the media.
Source:  Al-Diyar 13 March 2013

The Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL) launched its new website during an event hosted at the seat of the government and organised under the auspices of the Minister of Economy and Trade, Nicolas Nahhas, and with the presence of the Minister of Telecommunications, Nicolas Sahnaoui, Minister Marwan Kheireddine and a number of ambassadors and key economic figures.

IDAL’s chair of the board, Engineer Nabil Itani, addressed the audience while stressing that this new website reflects IDAL’s efforts to strengthen its outreach locally, regionally and internationally, considering that the new site will be a platform for investors to enable them to expand their businesses.  A review of the website followed including a presentation by the company which was commissioned to construct the website.
Minister Nahhas noted that the relationship between his Ministry and IDAL resulted in a complementarity in producing and disseminating information as well as in creating an environment that is conducive to businesses.  He also noted that his Ministry is committed to strengthening this relationship in order to achieve sustainable development particularly since investments are the key pillars of the national economy.

To visit IDAL;s new website check the following link: http://www.idal.com.lb/
Source: Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Safir 13 March 2013
For more information about IDAL’s 2012 activities and achievements please check the previous news, IDAL releases its 2012 report and shares its achievement in supporting the agricultural and food processing sectors, published on WEEPortal on 14/1/2013
 

In commemoration of women international day, Beirut and several regions of the country witnessed several civil and public activities during the past 2 days, among which was the national march for women’s full citizenship and equality organised by a coalition of women, youth and civil associations that took place yesterday and in which participated a wide range of civil and women associations. The march raised many demands, namely the adoption of a Lebanese civil personal status law, the women quota of 33% in parliament, passing a law that will grant women the right to pass their nationality to their children, and criminalizing domestic violence.
In the same vein, Hayat Arslan organized in collaboration with several women and civil organizations, the day before yesterday a “day of national mourning”, at the UNESCO Palace, in the presence of a number of prominent political and social figures, to mourn the present conditions in the country and demand women's rights in Lebanon. Arslan considered in her keynote speech that the "day of national mourning, is a day to break the silence and to speck out against the daily abuses practiced against citizens.
In addition, the First Lady Wafa Suleyman, in her capacity as the president of NCLW, launched last Friday, , at UNESCO Palace, the national plan to implement the women strategy for the period 2013 – 2016. Suleyman pointed out in her speech that Lebanese women deserve the best and have the right to participate in decision making processes, calling for the adoption of an electoral law that would guarantee a women quota at the parliament. She also came in support of a law that would allow women to pass their nationalities to their children.
Source: Al-Akhbar, Al-Safir, Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Nahar 9 & 11 March 2013

The Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF), in collaboration with Berytech and WE-Initiative of BLC bank, announced the beginning of the second round of applications for receiving 2 prizes for new small enterprises that will include the provision of funds and needed support and follow-up.
The project aims at supporting francophone business women, and stimulating the establishment of small enterprises, through the provision of 2 prize donations; the first of EU 13850 and the second of EU 10000. The successful applicants are expected to implement their project in no more than 3 years and the proposals should be submitted in French language.
Furthermore, the candidates should be holders of university degree holders preferably members of AUF; they should also reside in Lebanon for the duration of the project.
Applications should be submitted before 1st of April 2013
For more information of how to apply please review the following links:

http://www.auf.org/appels-offre/appel-candidature-2013-aide-la-creation-dentrepris/

http://www.berytech.org/content/view/1023/419/lang,fr/

Source: L’Orient Le Jour 11 March 2013

The Daily Star newspaper published today an article about “L’Artisan du Liban et L’Orient” the high-end boutique selling traditional handicrafts made by local artisans,  which was founded in December 1967. The article reviewed the history of the boutique and the struggle of its 2 founders May and Nadia el-Khoury the sustainability of the shop.
The article mentioned that the shop was opened by May el-Khoury, the late wife of one of Lebanon’s most prolific contemporary architects Pierre el-Khoury, in Ain al-Mreisseh in a year when Lebanon and much of the Middle East was still shocked and traumatized by Israel’s six-day military victory of 1967, stating that it was an innovative concept nearly five decades ago and has since spawned the most incongruous legacies of the war.

L’Artisan’s founder, May, never got to see the full extent of the trend she pioneered, since she tragically died in a car crash in 1975, and Pierre’s second wife, Nadia, took over L’Artisan on the same year. Nadia was encouraged by her husband, to start a career as a middle-aged woman. She dabbled in painting and interior design, before devoting herself to L’Artisan full-time in the 1990s, where she continued May’s fight through her own vision. Nadia sourced new markets for raw material such as Turkey and personally designed new interpretations of traditional crafts or revives patterns that are no longer used, which were then implemented by one of the 20 Lebanese craftsmen L’Artisan worked with.
The result was a hodgepodge of well-crafted, modern adaptation of standard Oriental fare. Colorful, faux-Ottoman era scrolls painted by a local Lebanese calligrapher are displayed alongside Turkish carpets and racks of elegantly embroidered caftans. Brass trays with calligraphy engraved by a local ironsmith are stacked next to a brightly colored ceramic Moroccan lamp on a dining room table surrounded by antique, mother-of-pearl-inlaid chairs. Baskets overflow with handmade dolls wearing individually designed, traditional Arabic dress and soaps made in Tripoli and Aleppo spill from shelves.

Nadia explained to “The Daily Star”, that the store had never lost money until last year, when the drop off in Gulf tourists began to take its toll. Nadia has slashed prices across the shop and is now searching for a buyer who will purchase L’Artisan du Liban et L’Orient as an institution. She’s negotiated with a few interested parties, but so far none have been willing to continue the vision pioneered by May. “Some people want to open a restaurant. Some people don’t want to buy stock.”
In the meantime, Lebanon’s original luxury artisan shop remains open.

Source: The Daily Star 8 March 2013

Lebanon celebrates today Women International Day, while the women of Lebanon are still unprotected and subjected to legal, political, economic and morale injustice, as demonstrated by the government rejection of a law proposal allowing women to pass their nationality to their children and yet the country will witness today and during the coming days a flurry of activities and actions celebrating this international day.
Within the same vein, one women group, Nasawiya organized yesterday a protest in downtown, demanding that Parliament endorses the law protecting women from domestic violence within a week or otherwise threatening to go on huger strike in front of the parliament. You can find more about the activities taking place on the occasion of Women International Day on the following links:
Source: Al-Safir, Al-Nahar, Al-Mustaqbal, Al-Akhbar 8 March 2013

On the occasion of Women International Day, the women branch in the Future Movement organized, yesterday in Beirut, a conference entitled: “Future Movement: The woman is an active member in fostering the democratic path”, under the auspices of the President Saad Al-Hariri, represented by Ahmad Al-Hariri, the General Secretary of this political movement. In his keynote speech, Hariri stressed that there can be no future without woman, that the political arena is tasteless if women are located in its center. He went on to say that there can be no democracy in a system that does not provide equal opportunities to both men and women. From his side, the former minister Hassan Mnaimneh, stated that women’s weak role in society does not reflect their inability or inefficiency, but rather points out to the shortcomings of men, emphasizing the importance of women’s active role in politics.
For her part, the responsible of the women branch in the Future Movement, Afifeh el Sayyed said that women issues do not concern feminists only but the entire society, both women and men equally.
Source: Al-Mustaqbal 7 March 2013

Diakonia launched yesterday, in collaboration with Dar Al-Amal, Caritas, and RDFL, a new project entitled “Reinforcing policies and the practices of human rights in women prisons in Lebanon”. This new project is funded by the EU and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and aims at supporting policy formulation concerning women prisons as well as solid practices based on human rights.
The design of the project was based on the experience of Diakonia and its partners in the field of working with women in prisons of Lebanon, and in accordance with human right standards. The project will support women inmates through raising their awareness of their rights and duties and building their capacities for reintegrating in society.
Source: Al-Nahar, Al-Safir 6 March 2013

On the occasion of Women International Day, the Lebanese Heritage Center at AUB, organized yesterday a seminar entitled: “When women published the newspapers”, which hosted the university researcher Dr. Elham Kallab Al-Bsat. The seminar helped to shed the light on the role of pioneer women in journalism at the beginnings of women journalism in Lebanon and Egypt, between the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Kallab reviewed the history of the first women newspapers starting from Egypt with Hind Nawfal and her newspaper “Al-Fatat” published in 1892, that was followed by a number of other newspapers in both Lebanon and Egypt, such as: “Al-Fardoss” published in 1896, “Al-3a2ela” (in 1899), “Al-Sayyidaat wal Banaat” (in 1903), “Fatat Al-Sharq” (in 1906), “Fatat Loobnaan” (in 1914), “Al-Fajer” (in 1919), “Minerva” (in 1923) and many others.
Kallab concluded her lecture pointing out to the importance of a contemporary comparison between these newspapers, their objectives, history and countries in which they were published as a catalyst for a more modern interpretation of the intellectual and cultural history of Lebanese women
Source: Al-Nahar 6 March 2013