Bcharri, home to world renowned Gebran Khalil Gebran, is one of Lebanon’s most beautiful and historical villages. Anater El Saydeh is Bcharri’s historical souk, which has been unfortunately neglected over the years.

UNDP Live Lebanon initiative, through the support of its Goodwill Ambassador Fadi Salameh, and the Municpality of Bcharri came together with a common desire: rehabilitate the ancient market of Bcharri to bring it back to its days of glory. In October 2013, and after months of hard work and determination, all the shops in this market and its public bathrooms were reconstructed and the 20,000 inhabitants of Bcharri were able once again to make use of the market.

Paired with the natural landscape and rich history that Bcharri has to offer, the renovated souk is now a place where local merchants, artists, artisans can exhibit their work and attract people from all towns and cities.

“The market is now very active. Economic and social activities are present and this creates a dynamic atmosphere among our people and with visitors. More shops are open now, and everyone’s happy”

An abandoned and unhealthy space was transformed into a useful centralized bazaar, boosting the village’s economy and vitality. This not only attracted tourists but also created new job opportunities.

Promoting development and sustainability in rural areas are key objectives of the UNDP Live Lebanon initiative, and the team was delighted to have been able to make a difference once again on that front.

Children with special needs at Koloob Al Noor association in Kfar Denis have always lived with the limitation of their physical conditions, and it was not fair to these special children to have to endure another form of limitation that may be solved. That was the motivation behind the generous contribution of Goodwill Ambassador Mr. Ghaleb Farha that enabled the 100 children at Koloob Al Noor to pursue an education customized to their special needs.

In November 2011, through Mr. Farha’s donation, Live Lebanon provided the association with physiotherapy machines, special tables, chairs, shelves, closets, and a minivan specially equipped for the children. Additionally, the initiative was lucky to have been able to provide over 200 audio-visual CDs, a TV, Headphone, and DVD players that were essential for the education of the children during a second phase of the intervention in 2013.

The support did not end there, as Live Lebanon was able to secure through the Ministry of Social Affairs teachers to work in the new centre, proving once again that overcoming obstacles is easy when there is a strong will at work.

Hope comes in many forms for the underprivileged, and over the years Live Lebanon Goodwill Ambassadors have proven to be the manifestation of hope for many Lebanese all over the country.

Most villages and cities in Lebanon are affected by power shortages, and Sultan Yaacoub is no exception, leaving its streets plunged in complete darkness for full nights. Consequently, thousands of lives were put at risk on the road, mostly at risk of becoming victims of car accidents. That was before the intervention of Live Lebanon in 2013.

In order to promote road safety despite the unavoidable Lebanese electricity shortages, Live Lebanon introduced in Sutan Yaacoub, a solar lighting system consisting of cables, poles and photovoltaic panels. Live Lebanon’s project came as a solution to the absence of functioning public lighting systems on the roads.

Thanks to the generous contribution of Goodwill Ambassador Mr. Mostafa Abdouni, the 3500 residents of the village have been benefitting from street lighting every night, 7 days a week, ever since the project was implemented in November 2013. The safe, sustainable and eco-friendly system that was offered to Sultan Yaacoub has played a major role in the reduction of car accidents in the village.

“It’s just perfect! We are now walking around at night safely”.

WHERE: Jounieh, Keserwan

WHO: 1600 students

Paradis d’enfants, is a non-profit primary school, home to over 1600 students from Jounieh and suburbs. The playground of the school was in poor conditions and was not designed to cater for young people needs. It was in need of refurbishment and it included equipment that reached the end of its life. As a result the wellbeing of students was undermined.

As part of this youth development project, Live Lebanon introduced to the school new venues that accommodate sports and entertainment purposes. A tent was put up in an open area to allow the students to practice sports during the summer as well as during the winter. And a theater was built to enhance the students’ access to the artist withing them.

This project was made possible thanks to the special help of our Goodwill Ambassador Mrs. Bouran Bouery

Live Lebanon project in partnership with Tetra Pak took the initiative to rehabilitate part of the school’s playground.

In addition to a generous financial contribution from Tetra Pak, Tetra Pak employees volunteerd to participate in the process of beautifying and redesigning the playground hand in hand with the Paradis d’enfants students.

Through Live Lebanon, companies and individuals have the opportunity to become agents of development by supporting any of the vital projects that Live Lebanon is implementing across the country.

In villages like Rob Tlateen, basic services are unattainable most of the time, and leading a decent dignified life is a daily challenge. In this village located in the south of Lebanon that harbors 1,500 inhabitants in the winter and 2,500 in the summer, the garbage of 373 local households remained uncollected for days. Most of it was left piled up on the streets of the village leaving a stench that was unbearable.

In 2011, under Live Lebanon’s green pillar, a project was successfully implemented providing Rob Tlateen with a garbage truck in order to solve the garbage collection problem and promote environmental awareness that reduce health risks.

Due to the waste management difficulty, the residents of Rob Tlateen suffered from poor sanitary conditions, as well as an increase in the number of airborne insects and stray dogs on the streets. Live Lebanon’s intervention was necessary, not only to protect the children and the elderly residents from the environmental crisis, but also to win back the entire area’s reputation.  

Thanks to Live Lebanon Goodwill Ambassador Mr. Mohamed Kachab, who generously sponsored the sustainable project, the villagers who were desperate for relief, saw a tremendous improvement in their living, health, and environmental conditions.

The management of the Maarouf Saad Nursery in Sidon approached the Live Lebanon team in 2010 to support the nursery that hosts mainly underprivileged children. It had not been rehabilitated since its initial establishment in 1982.

The playground, kitchen, and toilets were in extremely deplorable conditions, resulting in bad hygiene habits and low standards of teaching/learning for both staff and children alike.

Not only was the quality of the food offered poor because of the condition of the kitchen, but also there was no access to the playground that would encourage children to engage in healthy activities outside of their classroom.

Live Lebanon’s successfully intervened to make the lives of these 165 children better by rehabilitating the nursery. This included renovating the playground and toilets, as well as providing a brand new kitchen for better hygiene and new roofs that meet safety standards.

This project was made possible thanks to the generous contribution of Goodwill Ambassador Mr. Fadi Salameh who fully financed the rehabilitation that was completed in May 2011.

“The children now live in an environment that is fit for them in terms of safety and hygiene. It is aesthetically pleasing as well”.

Furn Ech Chebbak is a densely populated commercial and residential area with very little spaces available for children to gather and play safely.

UNDP - Live Lebanon implemented the rehabilitation of a football playground in Furn Ech Chebbak in March 2011, where children can now engage in recreational activities, build friendships and use their energy in a positive way.

The intervention took form in the provision of construction services for the renovation of the stadium and contributes to the overall wellbeing of 300 beneficiaries in Furn Ech Chebbak.

The comfortable recreational space serves for both sports and social activities as children and parents from diverse cultural backgrounds are now able to spend their time in a positive and healthy environment.

“Encouraging our kids to play football is very important. We would rather see them engaging in healthy activities than sitting at home on their phones all day”

This project was made possible through the generous contribution of Live Lebanon’s Goodwill Ambassador, Mr. Ghaleb Farha, who entirely funded the rehabilitation.

The Kferhabou Health Clinic (KHC) offers primary health services to the local community and the residents of seven neighboring villages. More than 8,000 residents have access to the clinic and 150 patients benefit from its services every month.

Despite the help of the municipality of Kferhabou and a number of NGOs, the center lacked essential equipment that could make healthcare more efficient for those with low-income who are unable to access these services elsewhere.

To address this issue, in December of 2010, the UNDP Live Lebanon initiative provided KHC with an obstetrics and gynecology ultrasound used in women health practices and that combines an advanced computer technology for a variety of clinical applications including fetal assessments, pelvic examinations and uterine screenings. The center also received an electrocardiogram; a device used to check and monitor heart problems.

This intervention would not have been possible without the generous contribution of Live Lebanon’s Goodwill Ambassador Mr. Ghaleb Farha. 8,000 citizens now benefit from improved primary care services.