Efforts of the Government of Korea in combatting climate change and land degradation in Lebanon
Under the Patronage and in the presence of H.E the Minister of Agriculture, Abbas Hajj Hassan, the Korean Embassy in Lebanon organized a meeting on 5 July 2022 in Beirut to share the efforts of the Government of Korea in combatting climate change and land degradation in Lebanon.
The meeting was also an opportunity to discuss the findings from the of the first phase of the project implemented in Anjar within the framework of the cooperation between the Government of Korea through its Embassy in Lebanon, the Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
“Climate change represents a new human existential threat to human prosperity with its adverse social, environmental and economic effects. Therefore, we need to find sustainable solutions for the future of our children. People need a real agricultural revolution that would form an effective path to a friendly industrial revolution,” stated the Lebanese Minister of Agriculture, Abbas Hajj Hassan.
Attended by Woosic Shin, counsellor and Deputy Head of mission representing the Embassy of Korea in Lebanon and by Nora Ourabah Haddad, FAO Representative in Lebanon, the meeting included video screenings and presentations on Korea's efforts against global warming and reforestation in Lebanon, focusing on its effects in Anjar, Bekaa.
During the meeting, the embassy of the Republic of Korea in Lebanon seized the occasion to announce its decision to launch the second phase of the project focusing on reforestation of Anjar.
"For half a century, the Republic of Korea has succeeded in providing the planet with an exemplary case of artificial reforestation. Through our project in Anjar, we want to share this experience with Lebanon whose true natural jewel is its forest," confirmed Woosic Shin, counsellor and Deputy Head of mission, while speaking on behalf of Il PARK, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea in Lebanon.
From her end, FAO Representative in Lebanon, Nora Ourabah Haddad, said that “FAO is committed to placing climate change at the heart of its programs at country level. It is important to recognize agriculture as part of the solution for adaptation and mitigation to climate change. In this regard, FAO’s interventions at country level promote climate smart agricultural practices, such as sustainable management of forests, other-wooded lands and rangelands.”
About the project “Enhancing the Resilience of Vulnerable Refugee Communities through Cash-for-Work”:
Funded by the Government of Korea, the project’s main objective is to enhance the livelihoods and skills of vulnerable Syrian refugees through labour-intensive reforestation and forest management activities.
The first phase of reforestation was implemented by FAO in Lebanon in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, and in partnership with the Lebanon Reforestation Initiative (LRI), the Association for Forests, Development and Conservation (AFDC), and Anjar municipality.
The project included reforestation activities over an area of 25 ha and 9 km of green belts and implementing sustainable management of 27 ha of forests and riparian ecosystems in Anjar.