Jizzine Economic Opportunities Project

Expanding Economic Opportunities for Survivors of Landmines and War Victims in the District of Jizzine, South Lebanon

Lebanon continues to suffer social and economic hardships that are caused and amplified by years of repeated wars and social conflicts; and most recently by the escalating global economic crisis. This has placed large sectors of the population, if not all, particularly those directly involved with war events, and misery fueling vicious cycles of underdevelopment, poverty, desperation and migration.

Support and funding from USAID and LWVF enabled the World Rehabilitation Fund to carry its mission and work in addressing the needs of disadvantaged war victims including landmine survivors and their families in the District of Jizzine - South Lebanon through the generation of work and income opportunities in agricultural production, processing, and marketing activities.

Within the context of the “Expanding Economic Opportunities for Survivors of Landmines and War Victims in the District of Jizzine, South Lebanon” project, three hundred and thirty members and their families, more than 2000 individuals, have joined to form The Development Cooperative in Jizzine and are benefiting from the COOP’s services which include food products and processing activities. Beneficiaries initiated with support from COOP, home-based agricultural production activities (decentralized), including Poultry Raising for Egg and for Broiler’s Chicken Production, Beekeeping for Honey Production, Goats for Milk Production and Cultivation of Medicinal Herbs.

On the other hand, the COOP-based services ensure the processing and marketing of the final product through the COOP Center located in Azour-Jizzine District. With direct assistance from WRF, the COOP has succeeded in establishing and supporting small feasible income generating activities through technical and material assistance, particularly production inputs, training and skill development, and institutional capacity building.

 

Project Contributions and Achievements:

Complementing the WRF’s General Mine Action Program, the Jizzine Project directly empowers landmine survivors and War Victims to become self-reliant promoting their socio-economic reintegration with the community. The COOP has based its values on self-help, self-responsibility, democracy, equality, equity, and solidarity. With the gracious support of all collaborators, WRF’s Jizzine Economic Opportunities project affected the livelihoods and lives of more than 2000 individuals in more than 300 families and has also had an indirect positive impact on tens of communities, hundreds of families, and thousands of individuals in the targeted Administrative District of Jizzine and beyond.