Under the patronage and in the presence of H.E caretaker Minister of Agriculture Dr. Abbas Mortada, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Lebanon conducted today a closing workshop of the project“Upgrading the Technical Agriculture Education System in Lebanon” funded by the Kingdom of Netherlands and implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, UNICEF, ILO, AVSI, WARD, IEA and Green Orient.

The closing ceremony took place in the presence of the Chargé d’Affaires a.i. at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Lebanon, Dr. Margret Verwijk, FAO Representative in Lebanon Dr. Maurice Saade, ILO Deputy Regional Director, Mr. Frank Hagemann, UNICEF Representative in Lebanon, Ms. Yukie Mokuo, AVSI country director , Mrs. Marina Molinolova, in addition to representatives from UN agencies, NGOs, the private sector  and employers, teachers and students from the agricultural technical schools and youth beneficiaries of the project.

The closing workshop included a presentation of the project achievements to enhance the quality of agricultural technical education and vocational training.

The project also worked on updating the programs and curricula of the agricultural technical baccalaureate based on the needs of the labor market and following competency-based approach.

It also updated the institutional arrangement related to school management that is the school internal constitutions necessary to apply this new system.

The project also rehabilitated the seven technical agricultural schools (Nasriyet Rizk – Fanar- Batroun – Abdeh – Baakline – Nabatieh- Khiyam) with a total amount of USD 3.8M out of the total budget of USD 9.88M and equipped their laboratories, fields and classrooms with agricultural equipment, supplies, and IT tools needed to enhance the practice base of the students’ skills.

The project also developed memoranda of understanding with the private sector for student placement in Work based learning. A digital mobile application and web-based platform linked at GIS system for students monitoring in the job market was also developed by the project.

The project also elaborated a youth protection policy for a safe protected learning environment.

Dr. Abbas Mortada said that "The joint cooperation has provided a real opportunity to improve the quality of education in agricultural schools and responded to the development needs of rural areas. It is a sign of hope to achieve peace and tranquillity, which are key conditions for development."

Mortada believed that "The closing of this event is, in fact, the beginning of the journey of a thousand miles in providing high quality technical and vocational agricultural education services based on modern curricula that respond to the requirements of the labour market and pave the way for graduates to enter the labour market. The economic feasibility of the agricultural sector is not only profitable but is also a guarantee of food security and allows national products to compete globally.”

From her side, the Chargé d’Affaires a.i. at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Lebanon, Dr. Margret Verwijk explained that: “The Netherlands has been a partner to Lebanon – in so many ways- supporting not only TVET but also step-by-step business models and value chains to assist for example with the export of potatoes from Akkar and avocados from Tyre.” She added: “Increased access to education and new forms of agriculture-based enterprise means that young people can be a vital force for innovation in family farming, increasing incomes and well-being for both farmers and local communities. Young people can transform the agricultural sector by applying new technologies and new thinking.”

Dr. Margret Verwijk expressed her concern about Lebanese teachers and youngsters leaving the country as the financial crisis builds. “Farmers, businesses, policymakers and educators need to promote agriculture as an intellectually stimulating and economically sustainable career and make jobs in the agriculture and food system ‘cool’ for young people.”

FAO Representative in Lebanon, Dr. Maurice Saade said: "Today we are inaugurating the work of a professional technical education system based on agricultural digital transformations and innovations which affect the lives and future of the most important age group in Lebanon, the youth who are the hope and future of change and the development of the agricultural sector."

He added: "We believe that the outcomes of the efforts of this project in strengthening the services of the Ministry of Agriculture in the field of technical and vocational agricultural education that affect the youth category have begun to be noticed and seen. They come at the right time to exploit the latent energies of young people and their contribution to innovation and the application of modern agricultural techniques in the agricultural and food sector."UNICEF

In her turn, UNICEF Representative in Lebanon Mrs. Yukie Mokuo highlight that “this partnership has led to several initiatives that have upgraded the agriculture TVET system in Lebanon, which has resulted in a high increase in the number of marginalized youth who now have increased access to quality formal education, literacy and numeracy courses, and certified vocational training throughout the country”. She also explained that “this is through a multidimensional approach laying on improving the physical environment such as rehabilitation of the 7 agriculture schools, enabling a supportive learning and working environment and improving the quality of the education program”. At the end, Mrs. Mokuo, extended her heartfelt thanks to UNICEF’s generous donors the Netherland embassy for their extraordinary support, and to his Excellency the ministry of Agriculture for the commitment, the hard work and the tenacity.

Mr. Frank Hagemann, Deputy Regional Director, ILO Regional Office for the Arab States said:  “The agriculture sector plays an important role in employment and providing livelihoods for Lebanese as well as refugees. In light of the compounded crisis, Lebanon now faces, investing in skills development reform and in innovative agriculture programs are vital to meet current socio-economic needs – as are approaches that combine training, employment, and income-generating opportunities. We need to quickly transition to a more inclusive, sustainable, and resilient economy. To do so, the government, development agencies, employers, and society at large need to equip workers with the right skills through a lifelong learning process.”

AVSI Country Representative, Ms. Marina Molino Lova said: “AVSI has supported the personal development of the youths, to empower them to become protagonist of their own life, identifying the skills they would like to strengthen and providing chances for professional and personal growth. The project has allowed as well the strengthening of the MoA Agriculture Technical Schools role within the socio-economic development of the rural areas.

She added: “We believe all actors involved in the Project (teachers, students, private sector enterprises) will play a key role for the recovery of the critical situation Lebanon and the agricultural sector are facing these days”.

At the end of the ceremony, the Food and Agriculture Organization put all the outputs and products produced by the project at the disposal of the Ministry of Agriculture and TVET actors. Studies, technical documents, and training materials were also distributed to TVET actors to maximize the benefit of their use in training youth in future interventions.

FAO affirmed its commitment with all partners to continue supporting and developing agricultural technical education in Lebanon to build youth capacity and their engagement in the agricultural sector.