Project Description

The project consists of launching an educational and social farm that carries out agriculture and agri-tourism activities, including an educational kitchen, a hen house, and will comprise the production of local products.

The project will engage impoverished families in the learning process of farming and cooking, while offering them the opportunity to work in the farm or find other jobs opportunities for them elsewhere, after their training. Thousands of Lebanese families live in poverty and have difficulty obtaining food and this will provide them have the possibility of having access to basic stuff such as vegetables, eggs and quality products free of charge.

Therefore, the main focus of the project is economic development as it will serve to create jobs especially for young people and women in all areas: breeding and agriculture, gardening, cooking, catering, finance and accounting, drivers, laboratory, factory, cleaning, cashier, etc.

Young people and women will be involved in this value chain, and will be able to support their families with a secure and year-round source of income. This project will help solve unemployment-related problems and will provide know-how and trade to hundreds of men, women and youths who lost their jobs in the first place. It will be the source of direct income for them and will help empower them, by training them, creating and securing jobs for them, thus reintegrating them in the society, and allowing them to help their families.

Finally, the educational and tourist services annexed to the project will contribute to the revitalization of the local economy, as it will be an indirect income for small businesses providing services to the farm.  The project will also help in the development of domestic and rural tourism, thus participating to improve the economic health of Lebanon.

Sustainability of the Project

This project will be done in partnership with a local NGO called Bassma, a Lebanese non-profit association for social development, founded in 2002 (178A/D), which aims to empower the most destitute families and help them become self-sufficient. Out of the total project budget of $420,000, Rotary Club Beirut Cedars is participating at a rate of $75,210 for the cost of the kitchen and its associated expenses.

The agri-tourism and educational services, as well as a table d’hôte, will ensure the viability of the project in the long run, to offset future costs of teaching and educating about farming and cooking, while revitalizing the local economy.  These services will attract families and groups of tourists, and will include:

– Personalized workshops for families, school pupils, and teenagers

– An onsite restaurant with a kids’ playground area

– A boutique to sell jars of jams and other seasonal products

Students from Saint-Joseph University who is a silent partner in this project (i.e. donated the land for a period of 8 years) will insure rotation in the farming services, workshops, restaurants, as well as in the hospitality services.

2 Comments

  1. Dear Ronald Farra
    Can you send me a breakdown of the project with more details in items and their cost?
    This will make it easier to help to find partners who could invest on parts of the project
    Many thanks
    Antonio Hallage

  2. As a 52 years rotarian, I have known very well Rony Farra and am proud to count him among my friends.
    His dynamism puts life in Rotary and his ideas and projects boost rotarian spirit among clubs.
    However my opinion is that Lebanon has reached such a dramatic level of bad governance and economic collapse, THAT COSMETICS ARE NO MORE THE SOLUTION.
    An ecotourism farm is not the solution to the scary food security situation that the contry will face very soon.
    Among rotarians (and my friend Rony is one of them) there are very clever and smart professonals who should put Rotary on the track of “saving Lebanon ”
    There is so much to do. My latest multiclub conference about Lebanese agriculture gave many solutions. I expect to lecture soon about food security, maybe it inspire our dynamic fellow rotarians.
    With warmest rotarian regards
    Riad Fouad Saade

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