The Rene Moawad Foundation provides the Municipality of Zgharta with two waste collection trucks, funded by the UNOCHA – Lebanon Humanitarian Fund.
Moawad: “Enough of confessional mobilization and exploitation. We have seen where this led us to. Development should unite us.”
The Executive Director of the Rene Moawad Foundation, Michel Moawad, said that “the right of diversity of opinion is legitimate to all, but Development must bring us all together and unite us.” He pointed out that “Development is not for the benefit of any individual amongst us. Development is for all of us… for our children, and for the future of Zgharta.” He stressed: “I have a firm belief that Zgharta deserves from all us to put aside all our differences and sensitivities to put all our energy for the service of Zgharta.” He added: “Enough of confessional mobilization and exploitation. We have seen where this led us to, and where it led our whole region. Wouldn’t it be so great if we all focused our energies for the development of Zgharta? Zgharta’s interest unites us. Zgharta needs all of us.”
Moawad’s speech came on the occasion of an event organized by the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden and the Rene Moawad Foundation at the Municipality’s quarters, during which the Foundation provided the Municipality with two waste collection trucks. This was within the framework of the ‘Bringing Adequate Sanitation Infrastructure in Zgharta and Mejdlaya’ project, funded by the United Nations Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA – Lebanon Humanitarian Fund).
The event was attended by the Zgharta Caemmakam Ms. Iman Al Rafii, the Rene Moawad Foundation’s Executive Director Michel Moawad, the Mayor of Zgharta-Ehden Dr. Cesar Bassim along with members of the Municipal Council, the head of the Humanitarian Fund for Lebanon at the United Nations Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs Ms. Rawad Zeer and the office’s Financial Director Abdo Sadaka. Also present were mayors and members of municipal councils, social, educational and cultural dignitaries, and a crowd of citizens from Zgharta-Zawiyat.
Details of the project
The Rene Moawad Foundation’s team had conducted a preliminary assessment on the various sectors, which had detected the needs of the town. This work was done in coordination with the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden. The assessment showed a lack in waste collection trucks, especially with the increased amount of waste resulting from the large number of displaced refugees, scattered in the various neighborhoods and corners of the town.
The duration of the project is 12 months. The Rene Moawad Foundation will be implementing it with the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden. The targeted groups are: The people living in Zgharta, 3000 Syrian refugees, 1000 students in 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th grades, 9 schools (6 public schools and 3 semi-free schools. 2 of these schools are in Mejdlaya and 7 in Zgharta).
The overall objective of the ‘Bringing Adequate Sanitation Infrastructure in Zgharta and Mejdlaya’ project is to reduce the conflict between the Syrian refugees and the hosting communities in the targeted communities, in matters related to sanitation and infrastructure. More specifically, the goal is to support and improve the capacities of the municipalities that are hosting refugees, by funding development projects for the municipalities that address infrastructure, sanitation, rain water and waste issues.
In particular, the main activities of the project are:
– Providing two trucks for waste collection
– Holding awareness seminars
– Distributing guiding manuals on water, sanitation and hygiene – Conflict resolution at schools
– Distributing hygiene kits to 1,000 students in the targeted schools.
Bassim
The presenter of the event was writer and media-person Mohsen Yammine. The first speaker after the Lebanese national anthem was Mayor of Zgharta-Ehden Dr. Cesar Bassim who stressed that “today the ability to keep Zgharta and Ehden clean has increased as each additional truck increases our capacity to serve the two cities, which are geographically remote but are so close by heart.”
Bassim thanked the ‘President Rene Moawad Foundation’ “who has dedicated the needed efforts so that we receive this international donation, and who joined us in this invitation. This comes due to the relationship of cooperation between the Foundation and the United Nations Office of Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs within the framework of the ‘Bringing Adequate Sanitation Infrastructure in Zgharta and Mejdlaya’ project.” Bassim also thanked the United Nations Office, which was born in the aftermath of the Syrian conflict “for providing support so we could carry the burden of the problems caused by movement of the displaced Syrian civilians across our borders.”
He concluded: “Our thanks to the Executive Director of the Rene Moawad Foundation, Mr. Michel Moawad for his personal support and his continuous backing for the Municipal Council, and for always striving to secure resources and projects for our region.”
Zeer
In her speech that followed, the head of the Humanitarian Fund for Lebanon at UNOCHA, Ms. Rawad Zeer said: “Starting from the end of 2014, the international community understood that there must be a genuine partnership with the Lebanese society. Thus, the work began for a national plan in partnership with the Lebanese State’s institutions and NGOs operating on the Lebanese territory, to join efforts in facing the challenges that come as a result of the Syrian crisis and its repercussions on the Lebanese society.”
She added: “We are celebrating today one of these partnerships, which is a successful partnership with the Municipality of Zgharta and the Rene Moawad Foundation, and I believe that more of this is coming soon too, due to the combined efforts. On the eve of our 7th year of work, the challenges did not end, but are rather increasing with the increase of needs. To face them, we find that water resources are becoming scarce and we need the help of people who know of those needs and are on the ground to offer creative and innovative ideas to help us cope with the challenges, and work with us hand in hand.” Zeer concluded: “We are moving forward in our task. The Lebanese plan to face the Syrian crisis was launched this year for a 4-year period and we hope in a fruitful cooperation.”
Moawad
Then, the Executive Director of the Rene Moawad Foundation, Michel Moawad spoke: “Today is one of my happiest days. On such occasions, I am proud that the Rene Moawad Foundation is implementing such development projects in all the Lebanese regions from the far South in Biyareen to the Northern part of Akkar in the North. As we are presently also developing projects in the Bekaa Valley. But, for sure, I am also certainly very proud and happy because we are inaugurating today a project in my home town, Zgharta.”
He added: “I’m happy that we have proved that when we make a promise we for sure turn it into reality. When we talk about development, we not only talk, but we do execute development projects. Zgharta has been deprived from development activities, so it surely needs a lot of good work today in this field.”
He said: “Today we are providing the Municipality of Zgharta with two trucks for waste collection, funded by the UNOCHA -Lebanon Humanitarian Fund. Zgharta needs help in this area, especially in the light of the increasing burden of dealing with waste due to the large numbers of Syrian refugees.”
Moawad pointed out that this project is also “in the context of reducing the cost of waste treatment that the Municipality of Zgharta is incurring, and must be complemented through a larger comprehensive project to treat waste in an environment-friendly way. The municipality and the Union are working to secure a factory for sorting the waste of the Zgharta-Zawiyat districts and other districts with the cooperation with Municipalities Unions of these districts. There is also a lot of work on awareness, cleaning and proper waste sorting in the houses, done by associations like the Rene Moawad Foundation and the ‘Mayadeen’ Association.”
He added: “I would like you all to know that what you are seeing is the beginning of a series of projects to be implemented through the cooperation between the Rene Moawad Foundation and the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden. We are for instance presently implementing a project in collaboration with the North Lebanon Water Establishment and the Ministry of Energy and Water, to resolve part of the water crisis in Zgharta. That project will benefit about 75% of the people living in the Municipality of Zgharta area. The project consists of using the water reservoir in Kfarhata after rehabilitating it (We call it the Kfarhata water tank but it is actually located in Zgharta). The municipality has conducted valuable studies on this, and we at the Rene Moawad Foundation have entrusted the study project to an Engineering firm which is in the final stages of its report.”
Moawad assured that “there is water of good quality under the tank, but the old wells are not functional and have defects. For that we will be digging for new wells and rehabilitating the tank. We will then link it to the main network of running water in Zgharta. The studies for this comprehensive project are nearly finished, and we will be starting with the implementation very soon, after obtaining the necessary authorizations from the Ministry of Energy and Water. Studies have also shown the need to clean the course of the Al Qadi spring, and we started looking for ways to finance that project.”
Moawad emphasized that “all that you are seeing today and what we described are the beginning of a long process of development works to be done in cooperation with the municipality, which we committed ourselves for when we entered the “كرمال زغرتا” municipal coalition. Our goal through the coalition is bringing development to Zgharta. Development will benefit everyone in Zgharta.”
He continued: “Enough of finding ways to enhance disagreement. The right of diversity of opinion is legitimate to all, but development must bring us together and unite us. A clean and properly asphalted road is for all of us to use equally. A clean environment is for all of us to enjoy. Clean water is for all of us and projects are for all of us. Development is not for me as an individual, or for so and so, or for anyone of us. Development is for all, for our children, for the future of Zgharta.”
He added: “What I’m saying is not poetry. It is based on my faith in Zgharta and on my love for Zgharta; my faith in the people of Zgharta. I belief that Zgharta deserves that we all go beyond our sensitivities and differences, and we put all our energies in its service. Enough of confessional mobilization and exploitation… We have seen where this led us to, and where it led our whole region. Wouldn’t be so great if we all focused our energies for development in Zgharta? Zgharta’s interest unites us. Zgharta needs all of us.”
He stressed that “Zgharta needs all of us, and for that we all have to give our support to the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden so that it can put all its energy to bring development to our town. This also requires that we carry on implementing the agreements with the Union, which is alongside with the municipality, the development authority to implement projects.”
He continued: “We are all a supportive power backing the Municipality of Zgharta-Ehden, but the development challenges put a great responsibility on the Municipality to achieve infrastructure works in Zgharta and Ehden. We know that this does not happen by pushing a button, due to problems accumulated through the years, and the limited resources. But for sure the Municipality has the responsibility to be at the level of people’s hopes and aspirations. We know that people have put high hopes in the work of this Municipality and in us, and we must be at the level of these hopes, whether in the area of bringing reforms in the municipal structure to allow the Municipality to meet the needs of our town and of Ehden, or by modernizing our procedures of work and reorganizing the rules for bids, solicitations and tenders and our ways to communicate and interact with people to make the municipal work more efficient and more transparent.”
He concluded: “Allow me to thank UNOCHA LHF in my personal name and in your names for the funding of this project. Thank you for being with us. We hope for further cooperation for more projects and development.”
The event ended by Mayor Cesar Bassim offering souvenir shields to Ms. Rawad Zeer and Mr. Michel Moawad, after he officially received the two trucks. Souvenir group photos were then taken and everyone was invited for a concluding reception.
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