Lebanon

Communication & Outreach / Spotlight

Most UNDP events mentioned on the main page under 'Calendar of Events' will be featured in this section. However, if you require specific information regarding any of the listed events, please feel free to contact Ms. Mona El-Yassir.

We expect the content of this page to gradually increase in volume and quantity as the days go by. In the meantime, we appreciate your patience and welcome your inquiries.

18 October 2007: Enhancing National Telecommunication Infrastructure
The United Nations Development Programme, represented by its Resident Representative Dr. Mona Hammam, signed with the Ministry of Telecommunication represented by H.E. Mr. Marwan Hamadeh, an agreement on Enhancing National Telecommunication Infrastructure on the 18th of October 2007.

The project aims at procuring an IP MPLS backbone infrastructure, for Ogero to use as a solid foundation for the provisioning of a wide array of new telecommunications services to the Lebanese market.

The project has a major impact on Lebanon and benefits and will trigger many private investments in Lebanon deploying broadband services that will result in the creation of many ICT related jobs and services.

This project will be nationally executed by the Ministry of Telecommunications/ OGERO with UNDP Country office Direct Support. The Executing Agency will be responsible for managing the project and will provide overall support to enable it to achieve its intended outputs and results. The project will entail large procurement activities for the provision of the hardware material to build the IP Backbone. To that effect UNDP and the Ministry of Telecommunication/OGERO will use the Long Term Agreement between the United Nations and CISCO SYSTEMS for the Direct Purchase of CISCO Equipment, License of Software and Provision of Services, attached to the present project document.

10 October 2007: Signing Ceremony of the Energy efficiency and renewable energy Project Funded by the Spanish Government with a $2.73 Million budget.
On the 10th of October 2007, an agreement on Energy efficiency and renewable energy Project in the Public Sector Buildings and Facilities for South Lebanon, the Bekaa region and Akkar, was signed between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Spain.

The project aims at supporting early recovery activities through the implementation of an energy efficiency and renewable energy program, in three specific areas (South, Bekaa and Akkar) highly affected by the recent conflict. To achieve this, the project will install energy efficiency and renewable energy equipment in selected public buildings and facilities (schools, hospitals, municipal street lighting, etc.).

28 November 2005: a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Council of Ministers and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for the second phase of the project “Technical Assistance Project For Electoral Reform in Lebanon”.
The first phase was structured to synchronize with the National Commission’s timetable and was therefore signed between the National Commission and UNDP on the 1 st October 2005... read more

29 July 2005: UNDP and La Fasad Association signed a project on “National Dialogue on Corruption in Lebanon”. The project aims at promoting accountability, transparency and combat corruption in the public institutions as well as raise awareness about cost of corruption with civil society at local communities.

2 August 2005: Within the framework of a joint funded project UNDP/ICTDAR and EU, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by UNDP/ICTDAR, Microsoft Corporation, and KAFA (Enough) to conduct training sessions, make copies of the CD-ROM, and equip selected social centers with computers. Microsoft has granted KAFA the sum of $20 000 to undergo a Training of Trainers, develop a website and KAFA will train social workers in selected centers on basic IT skills and the use of the CD-ROM in order to allow those social workers to provide women with more effective legal counseling... read more

20 June 2005: A signing Ceremony for $155,090 project “Institutional Strengthening Project (Phase IV), Ozone Office, was signed between UNDP, the Ministry of Environment and the Council of Development and Reconstruction. The project’s objective is to extend Institutional Strengthening support by Government of Lebanon namely the Ministry of Environment.

 20 June 2005: A signing ceremony for $2,091,420 project “National Phase-Out Management Plan” was totally funded by Montreal Protocol. It will phase out the remaining consumption of controlled substances under Annex- A, Group I substances (CFCs) of the Montreal Protocol, in Lebanon over the period of 2004-2009.

20 June 2005: A signing ceremony for $200,000 project “National Capacity Self-Assessment, NCSA” was funded by the Global Environment Facility, GEF. The main objective of the NCSA project is to identify and assess capacity constraints in the implementation of the three UN environmental conventions and prepare a National Strategy and Action Plan. In addition, the project will seek to determine the necessary mechanisms at the institutional and functional levels to address these constraints and explore ways of creating a higher degree of linkages and synergies between the conventions.

15 March 2005: A signature ceremony took place at the Ministry of Environment – Beirut, for the UNDP Regional project “Integrated Management of Olive Oil Production Waste in Lebanon, Syria & Jordan”. The project is funded by the European Commission through the SMAP Programme. The project document was signed between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Lebanese Ministry of Environment, in the presence of the Council of Development and Reconstruction and the European Commission Delegation in Lebanon. The project aims at introducing an integrated management system for the olive oil production waste and associated in-line complimentary industries in the participating countries, as a polluting industry which contributes to the degradation of water quality and agricultural lands by discharging waste effluents (pomace & vegetable water) in rivers, water currents and land without prior treatment... read more

8 June 2004: A cost sharing agreement to Support the Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Former Detainees in South Lebanon was signed between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Japan. The project if based on the survey conducted by the Ministry of Social Affairs in 2002 which revealed that 5232 persons were detained by the Israelis and their allied army in southern Lebanon since the beginning of the war. The majority of former detainees are males, imprisoned after 1982, and suffer from the mental and physical traumas of the horrors and torture they went through. Former prisoners suffer irreversible health problems, depression, and in difficulty in social and professional integration... read more

February - March 2004: $50,000 Launch of the Mainstreaming the National E-Strategy for Lebanon. UNDP in collaboration with the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR) formulated an e-strategy document for Lebanon in 2003. UNDP is developing a project for mainstreaming the e-strategy vision, the e-readiness findings and proposed programmes for its implementation.

The purpose of mainstreaming of the e-Strategy is to lay out the roadmap for the enabling building blocks for a national e-Society covering the information and communication technologies (ICT) infrastructure, the institutional and legal frameworks and the human resources from both the service user and service provider perspectives.

The Project will include a series of activities aimed towards:

- Increased advocacy and acceptance of the importance of developing institutional capacity, legislative frameworks and human resources towards achieving the vision of the e-strategy;
- Identifying technical assistance needs and implementation programmes towards launching the implementation of appropriate programmes;
- Monitoring progress by developing a national database and networking mechanisms 
- Mainstreaming the e-strategy methodology in the Arab region as a model for replication in the Arab region

9 April 2003: $3 millions project for Enhancing Decision-Making Capacities in the Prime Minister’s Office – LEB/03/006 was signed between UNDP and the Prime Minister’s Office. The overall objectives of the project are to provide economic, legal and technical assistance to support policy-making and inter-ministerial coordination and to optimize the capacity to plan and manage towards targeted development outcomes.

1 April 2003: $ 60.000 Launch of the consultative process with stakeholders from government, the private sector, academia, NGOs, and UN system and international organizations for the formulation of a National e-Strategy for Lebanon, under a UNDP project in cooperation with the Office of the Ministry of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR).

21 January 2003: Signing ceremony for US $ 7 millions project Support to Civil Service Reform: Enhancing Policy Making and Management Capacity – LEB/02/009 was signed between UNDP , the Office of the Minister of State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR) and council for Development and Reconstruction signaling a new generation of assistance towards the implementation of the National Strategy for Administrative Development and aligning OMSAR’s mandate with the UNDAF goal on Enhancing Decision Making Capacity. In this new project, UNDP will assist OMSAR functions that reinforce national efforts to achieve the develop modern management capacities in key administrations; Support efforts towards reducing the size and cost of the administration; Modernize legislations, and develop a citizen-oriented administration.

20 January 2003 : US $ 4.7 millions project for Capacity Development for Fiscal Reform and Management – LEB/03/003 was signed between UNDP and the Ministry of Finance (MoF) signaling a new generation of assistance to the Ministry of Finance to address, initiate, implement and shepherd major fiscal reforms. The project strategy contains three main axes, which are: a) Consolidating and institutionalizing fiscal reforms realized under Leb/92/017 through capacity building at MoF; b) Identifying and implementing a new generation of reforms in line with the MoF vision for the 21st century; and, c) responding to the economic agenda of the Lebanese government post the Paris II which aims at restoring Lebanon’s economic status toward sound ground, fiscally and economically.

November-December 2002 : $ 670,000 project Investment Promotion: Support for Strategy Development and Institution Building (LEB/02/014) – was signed between UNDP, the Investment Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL) and Council for Development and Reconstruction to support IDAL implement its mandate and establish technically qualified capacities and systems.

In addition $70,000 have been allocated, using UNCTAD support. The project includes an UNCTAD support to undertake an Investor Perception Survey of existing and potential investors and FDI potentials for Lebanon.

27 August 2002: Launching Event of  “Lebanon-Cross Sectoral Energy Efficiency and Removal of Barriers to ESCO Operation” UNDP/GEF Project... Click here to read more

26 August - 4 September 2002: The World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg 2002... Click here to read more