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Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
The Ministry of Environment (MOE) is responsible for policy planning and setting laws and regulations. Line Ministries, local authorities and other national authorities are responsible for implementation, including the following among others: from the Government: the Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Hydraulic and Electrical Resources, and the Council for Development and Reconstruction; para-statal bodies such as the National Council for Scientific Research, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Lebanese and American Universities; and more than fifty NGOs working in the social, health, development, business fields, etc., among which are the Lebanese Environment Forum, the Green Forum, the Association for Forest Development and Conservation, the Green Line, the Society for the Protection of Nature, and the Lebanese Businessmen Association.
The Council for Development and Reconstruction (CDR) is a planning body and ensures coordination of foreign funding. NGOs have influenced policies on some occasions, and the private sector can be mobilized to play a major role.
Because of the impact of war on administrative structures and human resource abilities, environmental management suffered from grave problems: inappropriate qualified personnel, inefficiency, low salaries and overlapping responsibilities. The Government recognized the urgent need for reform and rehabilitation and considered the institutional strengthening as a significant component of the recovery program. This recognition was translated in the creation of several ministries mainly the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Administrative Reform.
In 1997, an agreement was signed between the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Administrative Reform, in order to:
The Council is still in a preparatory phase.
Ministry of Environment
The Ministry of Environment was created by Law 216 (April 1993) and is empowered to study, propose and implement national environmental policies. It is considered the only regulatory environmental agency in the country. The Ministry is committed to ensuring good implementation and enforcement of environmental legislation, acts and regulations. The ultimate long-term objectives of MoE are summarized as follows:
Among the most important responsibilities of the MoE in the field of environmental management is the identification of permitting conditions for new industry, agriculture, quarrying and mining, and the enforcement of appropriate remedial measures for installations. The necessary environmental management schemes that can support MoE to fulfill this particular obligation are essential at this stage of reconstruction and development of the Lebanese economic sectors.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
Since September 1994 the Ministry has initiated a Capacity 21 programme, with UNDP's support, to assist Government efforts to integrate sustainable development within national plans. This programme has led to the development and updating of the following laws:
The review of legislation is ongoing and planned to continue until 1999. Lebanon has a large body of environmental laws, some dating back to the 1930s. However, these laws are characterized by obsolescence, lack of clarity and lack of coherence.
MoE also enacted emission and ambient quality standards for air, water and noise pollution in 1996. However, the standards are difficult to enforce because of the fragmented and small-scale nature of industry and the lack of institutional capacity. More recently, an interministerial committee, constituted by the Ministry of Industry and Petroleum, the Lebanese Norms Institute (LIBNOR) and MoE have further reviewed industrial emission standards, however the capacity of this committee to set new emission standards with a clear enforcement schedule is also inadequate.
Lebanon Inter-agency Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development
The Inter-agency Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development (ICESD), established in 1993, resumed its activities on February 6, 1996, in response to the urgent need to coordinate various activities undertaken by UN agencies.
The committee agreed on the following Terms of Reference:
The first task of the Committee's Secretariat was the compilation of a directory of the activities of UN agencies related to environment and sustainable development, which can assist in establishing a strategy for the Committee. The Directory was compiled following a series of meetings with project managers and Government focal points working in environment related projects in various UN funded activities.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
Despite all these obstacles, MoE has set priorities on the national level for the year 1997-1998, and these can be summarized as follows:
In 1995, a METAP/World Bank project helped the Government establish a State of Environment Report and a Strategy Framework, which was later approved by the MoE. The framework needs to be further updated and consolidated into a national strategy. The World Bank also supported the set up of a Planning and Programming Unit at MoE with the following tasks:
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
Status
Outside the on-going efforts by MoE and CDR, the National Administrative Rehabilitation Programme can be considered as a new national mechanism within the scope of the Ministry of Administrative Reform that can be drawn upon for ensuring a broad national intervention at the Government level. This programme is constantly looking into the following:
NGOs are also making an effort to better network and coordinate their activities and share experiences. These efforts need to be assisted by the international community, since the national efforts are proving not capable of moving forward at the required pace.
In 1992, the CDR prepared and launched the National Emergency and Reconstruction Program (NERP). This $2.25 billion program was aimed at restoring basic infrastructure services such as electricity and telecommunication sectors in the country. The plan was essential to allow proper functioning of the private sector, which would be mobilized to increase economic activity.
The first phase of rehabilitation is nearing completion and some major benefits have already being experienced: 24 hour electricity supplies are provided to most users, telecommunication systems are functioning better, some 1,200 public schools have been rehabilitated. Garbage collection has been put in place in Beirut and is gradually being extended to other regions. Renewing of roads and services in the northern and southern suburbs of Beirut is taking place.
The second phase of work (HORIZON 2000) has been launched, with more attention to physical as well as social infrastructure: education, health, water supply, waste water, and solid waste sectors. Projects are being prepared to the value of $840 million. Work is progressing in the rehabilitation and re-building of educational facilities. The Government has also embarked on construction of a number of major new development projects, such as new power generating facilities, the new Beirut University Hospital, the Beirut International Airport, expansion of the Lebanese University and some urgently required roads projects.
National Decision-Making Structure |
|
| 1. National Sustainable Development Coordination Body: | No |
| 2. National Sustainable Development Policy: | No |
| 3. National Agenda 21/other strategy for SD: | No |
| 4. Local/Regional Agenda(s) 21: | In process |
| 5. Environmental Impact Assessment Law: | In process |
| 6. Major Groups involved in Sustainable Development Decision-Making: | No |
National Instruments and Programmes |
|
| 1. Sustainable. Dev. or environmental education incorporated into school curricula: | In process |
| 2. Sustainable Development Indicators Program: | In process |
| 3. Ecolabel Regulations: | No |
| 4. Recycle/Reuse Programs: | No |
| 5. Green Accounting Program: | No |
| 6. Access to Internet: | Yes |
| 7. Access to World Wide Web: | Yes |
| 8. A national World Wide Web Site for Sustainable Dev. or State of the Environment: | address: www.sdnp.org.lb. |
Policies, Programmes, and Legislation |
||
| Does your country have either a policy, programme, and/or legislation consistent with Agenda 21 in: | ||
| 1. Combatting poverty: | No | |
| 2. Changing consumption and production patterns: | No | |
| 3. Atmosphere: | In process | |
| 4. Land Use Planning: | Yes | |
| 5. Forest and Deforestation: | Ad-hoc | |
| 6. Desertification and Drought: | In process | |
| 7. Sustainable Mountain Development: | No | |
| 8. Sustainable Agriculture: | No | |
| 9. Biological Diversity: | Yes | |
| 10. Biotechnology: | No | |
| 11. Oceans and Coastal Areas: | In process | |
| 12. Freshwater Management: | Ad-hoc | |
| 13. Toxic Chemicals: | Yes | |
| 14. Hazardous Wastes: | Yes | |
| 15. Solid Wastes: | Yes | |
| 16. Radioactive Wastes: | No | |
| 17. Energy: | No | |
| 18. Transport: | No | |
| 19. Sustainable Tourism: | No | |
Challenges
All of the enacted laws need to be further ratified by Government, and enforcement mechanisms established. The enforcement of environmental regulations and monitoring compliance remains inadequate due to weak inspection and enforcement capacity of the Ministry of Environment and the overlapping of responsibilities in MoE's mandate with other government agencies concerned with environmental issues. Coordination mechanisms for sustainable development are also weak; no institutionalised mechanism for coordination exists. It is difficult to establish clear roles and lines of communication. Yet the management of cross-cutting environmental issues requires clear and defined means of communication and allocating responsibilities between Ministries.
The limited staffing at MoE is another major constraint. The Ministry has only 13 employees including the Director General, and most of these have administrative rather than technical duties. After the Ministry was allowed to contract staff with salaries commensurate with skills, technical work is now performed by 20 engineers employed on fix-term contracts. National expertise usually cannot be attracted by low salary rates at the MOE and other public institutions. EIAs for instance are only carried out in the case where donors supporting a specific project impose an EIA to be produced prior to the approval of such funds.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
A Monitoring and Reporting Strategy for environmental programs in Lebanon is being developed by UNDP.
Environmental education and awareness: A national awareness plan has been established, but it has not yet been implemented. Re-enforcement of the Protocol between MoE and the Ministry of Education will be updated soon.
Some lessons have been learned about capacity-building, including:
Capacity-building principles can be applied to development programs through the following tools and mechanisms:
Reports on Capacity-Building for Sustainable Development are submitted to UNDP's CAPACITY 21 Program, on the scope of work of the national Capacity 21 program.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
CooperationLebanon is a member of:
An exchange of experience on sustainable development activities takes place through the following bodies:
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submissions to the 5th, 6th and 7th Sessions of the Commission on Sustainable Development. Last update: November 2000.
For information on Environmental Law around the World, click here:
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WOMEN
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
As a result of the Beijing Conference, a National Commission for the Advancement of Women was established by Governmental decree.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
UN agencies and EU are supporting the development of a national strategy in cooperation with concerned NGO committee.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
The percentage of women in parliament in 1992 and 1996 was 2%. The number at the local
government level is negligible. Policies or strategies are being drawn up for achievement
of equality in all aspects of society. Two laws were changed due to NGO pressure.
Curricula promoting dissemination of gender-relevant knowledge are planned.
Programmes and Projects
In 1996, the Ministry of Social Affairs launched the project Strengthening Institutions for the Development of Women Enterprises. The project now has a core of 20 trainers and business counsellors and has conducted 9 training courses for women potential entrepreneurs, with 230 women and two men graduating.
Status
No information is available.
Challenges
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
The Arabsalim Women's Association started a solid waste collection and recycling campaign in the South Lebanon. They began with composting organic wastes and training local community groups to sort plastic and glass for recycling.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women was signed and ratified in 1996 with major reservations.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: June 1997.
For information on Women Watch in
different countries, click here:
For information on national
plans of action in the follow-up to the Beijing Conference, click here:
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CHILDREN AND YOUTH
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
StatusChildren and youth are ad hoc participants in the national sustainable development process. Regional and international cooperation in the form of youth fora does exist. One Parliamentary session was held where the Speaker of Parliament chaired a session in which children were given the opportunity to "act" as deputies.
Challenges
No information is available.
Children and youth influence environmental awareness and sustainable development through school clubs and CBOs. Local NGOs provide youth fora and summer camps.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: June 1997.
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INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
Not applicable.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: 1 April 1997.
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NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
In 1994, eight NGOs established the Lebanese Environment Forum (LEF), which now undertakes projects such as reforestation, establishment of sanctuaries, restoration of old churches and mosques, in addition to awareness campaigns for protecting the environment. Member organizations hold monthly coordination meetings with the Minister of Environment and workshops and seminars are set up by the MoE and NGOs to disseminate environmental information and increase public awareness.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups InvolvementNGOs have played a major role in the creation of the MoE, through lobbying and enhancing pressure. Since its early creation, the MoE sought for a lon-term strategy of coordination among NGOs. It also realized the need for networking between NGOs and the Ministry. Several seminars were offered to provide NGOs with knowledge on lobbying, mobilizing funds and formulating projects to the MoE. Seminar objectives were identifies through a Capacity 21 project.
NGOs are always invited to participate in decision-making regarding public awareness, strategy plans and urgent issues such as hazardous wastes, quarries, and the protection of monumental and natural sites.
Programmes and Projects
Some success stories:
The House of Environment of Mount Lebanon aims at the collection and dissemination of environmental knowledge and know-how on eco-efficiency among schools, community groups and NGOs. The project was launched through the Association Liban Nature Environment and is in the process of construction.
The Association for Forest Development and Conservation (AFDC) initiated the Tree Nursery and Environmental Training Centre Project in Aley Caza in 1993. The tree nursery provides 25,000 pine trees a year. The Environment Training Centre will be the first of its kind in Lebanon.
Status
Since the early 1970s, several NGOs have been established by researchers and scientists. Their main role has been to increase environmental awareness amongst the general public and to draw attention to pressing environmental problems and human health issues. In the early 1980s, NGO activities were rather theoretical, covering research and case studies on wild life, forests, rivers, flora and fauna as well as the marine environment. However, during the war, environmental concerns were inevitably considered to be a luxury. As the fighting decreased, public concern for the environment began to reappear and environmental NGOs were reformed. By the late 1980s, there were about 40 institutions and societies throughout the Lebanon, which were concerned with environmental issues. Their activities focussed primarily on urgent local issues.
Challenges
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the Commission
on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: June 1997.
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LOCAL AUTHORITIES
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
StatusSince independence in 1943, Lebanon has faced only two elections for local authorities, the first in 1953, the second and last in 1963. Elections were planned for June 1997, but they were postponed for one year by the Government. During the war, local authorities became very weak. In many cases illegal military forces replaced local authorities by imposing taxes on people. The decision to postpone elections further marginalized local authorities. At present there are only 107 active municipalities in Lebanon. The major problems, urban and rural municipalities face are those related to solid waste, sewerage, heritage, public health and urban planning. Rural municipalities also face problems with domestic and irrigation water and urban encroachment upon agricultural and forest lands. Nevertheless, some municipalities have initiated successful projects in the field of environmental management, particularly waste collection and recycling projects.
Challenges
No information is available.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: June 1997.
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WORKERS AND UNIONS
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups InvolvementWorkers do not yet participate in National Agenda 21 discussions or implementation.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
Status
No information is available.
Challenges
No information is available.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: 1 April 1997.
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BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and PlansThere are governmental policies increasing the efficiency of resource use, including reuse, recycling, and reduction of waste per unit of economic output and requiring recycling, etc. A few big enterprises have adopted sustainable development policies. MoE is preparing a national programme for this purpose.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
Status
Since 1994, private sector organisations repeatedly called for privatisation of public infrastructure and services. It was argued, that the rehabilitation and operation of public utilities can be delegated to the private sector under agreed arrangements and strict supervision with clear policies for pricing and marketing. The Government has continued preparatory activities towards restructuring public services, particularly in the field of electricity and telecommunications.
To a large extend reconstruction works are now in the hand of private companies. The company ELYSSAR carries out the redevelopment of the Beirut Southern Suburbs, a redevelopment programme with a budget of US$ 2 billion, reconstruction of Beirut Central District was initiated through SOLIDERE, another privately owned company. Environmental Impact Assessments are urgently needed in these projects in order to ensure sustainable development.
Strengthening the private sector is a governmental priority. The Lebanese Investment Development Authority (IDAL) vigorously promoted Lebanon with a view to attract private investment. It commissioned a number of studies and developed its project portfolio.
The recent period witnessed the development of new bank products (personal loans, housing loans, etc.) aiming at the support of economic and social projects such as expansion, re-equipment and modernization of small-scale enterprises and the creation of micro enterprises and handicrafts by displaced.
Several small industries have started recycling of paper, glass and plastic. However, they suffer from lack of advanced technologies and finance to ensure the durability of their projects.
Challenges
No information is available.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of
the Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: June 1997.
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SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL COMMUNITY
Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
StatusThere is some effort toward improving exchange of knowledge and concerns between the S&T community and the general public.
Challenges
No information is available.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and Technologies
No information is available.
Financing
No information is available.
Cooperation
No information is available.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th Session of the
Commission on Sustainable Development, April 1997. Last update: 1 April 1997.
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FARMERS
[Please refer to sections on Agriculture, Land Management and Mountains in the section on Natural Resources]
* * *
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Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
The National Council for Scientific Research (NCSR) is the main national body and is
responsible for formulating the scientific needs and strategy and ensuring the best
utilization of scientific resources for the public benefit.
The NCSR is directly linked to the Council of Ministers and includes the following
departments:
The Ministry of Environment, the NCSR and United Nations agencies such as UNDP facilitate dialogue among the scientific community, the Government and the public at large with respect to issues related to sustainable development.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
No information is available.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
No information is available.
Programmes and Projects
No information is available.
Status
No information is available.
ChallengesThe damage to the Lebanese scientific community that occurred from the war was great and it will take some time to replenish both human and financial resources needed in this sector.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
No information is available.
Information
No information is available.
Research and TechnologiesMany universities have developed expertise in the field of the environment and
sustainable development and can be considered centres of excellence in the region.
Research remains theoretical in many cases and lacks the backup of practical information
which cannot be obtained in many instances due to the lack of sophisticated analytical
instruments. Some researchers are also returning to the private university where rates are
improving; however, many national experts have remained outside the country where salaries
are higher.
Research is being conducted, e.g. on potable water and irrigation water. Extended research
and data collection is taking place on major water bodies. The use and losses of water are
also under study.
Financing
No information is available.
CooperationOther support has been channelled towards specific areas, for example: Germany assisted the Remote Sensing Center; IEAE supported the NCSR; USAID supported the American University of Beirut; AUPELF supported Francophone Universities; and MEDCAMPUS assisted in training Lebanese University.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submissions to the 5th and 6th
Sessions of the Commission on Sustainable Development. Last update: december 1997.
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Decision-Making: Coordinating Bodies
The Ministry of Environment is
responsible for policy planning and setting laws and regulations pertaining to sustainable
development.
The Council for Development and
Reconstruction (CDR) is a planning body that ensures coordination of foreign funding,
including those attributed to environmental projects.
The National Council for Scientific Research (NCSR) which is directly linked to the Council of Ministers is responsible to formulate scientific needs and strategies and ensure the best utilization of scientific resources for public benefit.
The Central Administration of Statistics (CAS) is a public institution affiliated to the Council of Ministers with the mandate to conduct statistical studies and figures. By-law, all governmental and non-governmental institutions should collaborate with this administration and provide it with data relative to economic, social, demographic (and now environmental) data.
Ministries are responsible to produce, manage, and disseminate data relevant to their mandates and tasks. For instance: the Ministry of Energy and Hydraulic Resources (energy and energy related issues), Ministry of Public Transport (management, construction and maintenance of classified road network, management of land occupation), Ministry of Transport (management of sea, air and land transport issues), Ministry of Interior (law enforcement, NGO registration), Ministry of Health (health and health related issues), Ministry of Social Affairs (social issues), municipalities (local management), and so on.
Until now, the Lebanese legal texts
lack any article pertaining to the flow and management of information. In 1997, the first
attempt to legalize this issue was made real through the Code of Environment (see below).
The Code was commented and reviewed through the Environmental Parliamentary Committee in
collaboration with concerned ministries e.g. Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture,
Ministry of Transport, Directorate of Urban Planning, Ministry of Hydraulic and Electrical
resources, and experts. It is still awaiting for the Parliament approval.
In the same context, and to enhance national collaboration in the field of information, the Ministry of Environment launched the Lebanese Environment and Development Observatory (LEDO) in early year 2000. The project financed by EC-LIFE THIRD Countries and administered by UNDP acts on gathering, processing and disseminating information related to sustainable development to all concerned ministries and institutions. In the same line, LEDO collaborates closely with the Central Administration for Statistics.
Municipalities are responsible for implementation of any law and decree promulgated by the Ministry in charge. This legal act is channeled to them through the Governorats (Mohafazats). However, it is worth mentioning that few municipalities are establishing now their own database through extensive surveys and studies pertaining to their own city/village.
Decision-Making: Legislation and Regulations
In 1997, the Ministry of Environment
started working on the Code for the Environment that stipulates in Section 3- Chapter 1
all rules and regulations pertaining to flow and management of information. Article 3 in
specific stated that an information management system would be established under the
supervision of the Minister of Environment. The methods and means to organize
environmental management data shall be defined in a statutory order issued by the Council
of Ministers and upon suggestion from the Minister of Environment. This Code is currently
in the Parliament for approval.
No other regulatory or legislative tool has been identified in this regard.
Decision-Making: Strategies, Policies and Plans
All plans related to development and use of indicators, standardization of data, establishment of a comprehensive information network and information capacity-building, are part of the Ministry of Environment’s goal to be executed by LEDO during its two-year duration. Presently, sets of environmental indicators are under preparation. In addition, LEDO will publish an update version of the State of the Environment Report for Lebanon and an Environment Atlas, as well as the project will open access to reliable quantitative, qualitative and mapped environment and development data in Lebanon. Capacity building programmes have started to instruct national concerned participant on the use of indicators in their respective fields.
The Five Year Development
Plan FYDP (2000 – 2004) prepared by the Council for Development and Reconstruction
global indicators were used to determine present level of provision of public facilities
in various Lebanese areas. These indicators have shown that Lebanon is below acceptable
international standards in water, waste water, road traffic, environment and treatment of
solid waste, while other sectors like education, electricity, telecommunications and
housing have reached relatively acceptable levels. These indicators will be used for
planning and prioritizing sectors.
The Common Cooperation Framework prepared by UNDP (used also by CDR for FYDP) pointed out to the continuing attention within programmes to be given to the responsiveness of the programmes to the (1) evolving environment, (2) resource requirements and appropriateness of the allocation of resources to priorities in view of financial constraints, and (3) capacity building for sustainable development.
Decision-Making: Major Groups Involvement
Mainly scientists and non-governmental
organizations are involved in the collection, assessmnt, management and dissemination of
information and data for decision amking for sustainable development. But it goes
without saying that data is being collected and processed according to the needs of the
concerned groups and institutions. For instance, data is collected by local authorities
for project development, scientists and universities for research purposes, NGOs for
establishing specialized database, formulating projects, and organizing capacity building
programmes and awareness campaigns. However, the level of disseminated data depends on the
institutions owning and managing this database.
On the other hand, another type of
promoting information on decision-making is the establishment of the Forum for
Parliamentary Dialogue consisting of an equal number of members of Parliament and NGO
representatives, modeled after the Canadian Parliamentary Center, was established in
November 1999. The forum was the outcome of a series of workshops aiming at informing and
promoting citizens’ participation in dialogue and communication on legislative
development and national policies (financed by Canada and the European Union).
A third type of information sharing for decision making purpose is made possible through the Higher Council for Urban Planning, a coordinating body that encompasses all ministries to formulate decisions pertaining to land-use planning.
NGOs are constantly kept informed by the various decisions and activities undertaken by the Ministry of Environment through their participation in the activities carried out by MoE.
One outcome of the Capacity 21
Programme (funded by UNDP and executed at MoE) is the Local Agenda experience in four
municipalities of Lebanon. This initiative enabled these authorities to set the plans for
gathering and assessing local data relative to sustainable development.
Finally, a series of seminars were organized on different aspects of municipal development, at the initiative of the Centre d’Etude et de Recherches sur le Moyen-Orient (CERMOC). These monthly seminars provided and discussed topics pertaining to the legal, regulatory, data availability and use, urban planning, environment and development, and political issues that are of crucial importance for the development of the municipalities in a sustainable way.
The Sustainable Development Networking Programme (SDNP)
organized several workshops to expose its objectives and activities. All ministries, NGOs
and other institutions attended these workshops, and links were extended with the majority
of them (lesson learned).
In the same line, The Lebanese Environment and Development Observatory (LEDO) and the Ministry of Environment organized a National Workshop entitled “The Lebanese Environment and Development Observatory: A National Ownership” on May 11-12, 2000. This workshop was attended by representatives of public institutions in Lebanon, as well as scientific and research institutions and civil society organizations. The aim of this forum was to activate the role of the Lebanese Environment and Development Observatory (LEDO) to monitor environment and development issues, using sets of corresponding indicators. This would ultimately aim at enabling these institutions and decision-makers to gear their planning towards sustainable development. As a result of this activity, a list of indicators (natural, human, economic, etc.) was discussed, prioritized and approved. Then a training course on indicators was held to enable national participants to use and perform indicators each in their respective sectors.
Programmes and Projects
In 1996, the Sustainable Development
Networking Programme was launched at the Ministry of Environment and funded by UNDP
(phased out in 19980. This project aimed at sharing information among the various
stakeholders by linking them through efficient networks while providing the necessary
training and capacity building for the human resources involved.
In early 2000, an another project was launched at MoE with the aim of providing information on sustainable development. The Lebanese Environment and Development Observatory (LEDO) is a project funded by the European Commission – LIFE Third Countries, managed by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and hosted by the Ministry of Environment. Its general objective was to provide proper information and better understanding of the state of environment and development in Lebanon. This objective will be achieved through (1) partnerships with other ministries, agencies, academic and research institutions, as well as governmental and non-governmental organizations involved in environment and development issues, (2) pooling efforts to gather environment and development data, and (3) identify gaps and redundancies to establish a national information network.
LEDO entails a capacity building programme of partner organizations with a technical assistance component. A major and pilot achievement of this project is the formulation of indicators to assist institutions and decision-makers in monitoring and planning sustainable development issues.In order to achieve its objectives, LEDO aims
at promoting this observatory as a National Institution owned by all concerned
stakeholders, to act as a platform for environment and development information gathering,
sharing, analysis and dissemination, as well as a monitoring tool for proper planning and
enhanced decision making.
The Implementation of the Institutional
development Strategy for Lebanon is a project funded by UNDP and executed by the Office of
State for Administrative Reform (OMSAR). The project aims at assisting the Government of
Lebanon, through OMSAR, to implement an Institutional Development Strategy, to ensure the
procurement and execution of office technology, information technology, technical
assistance, training and other components of the National Action Rehabilitation Programme
(NARP), and finally to develop a resource mobilization strategy to assist OMSAR in its
public sector management reform efforts.
An Information System for Combating Desertification in Lebanon is put in place at the Ministry of Agriculture. Financed by GTZ, the project is currently working on creating essential data layers entailing variables on climate, vegetation, socio-economic data, land physical features and resources, and land-use.
Another project that has phased out from the Ministry
of Agriculture is the “Global Result of the Agricultural Survey”. The objectives
of this programme were to (1) provide structural and accurate data about the agricultural
sector at national and local level, thus allowing a better knowledge of agricultural
regions and fields’ specificity, (2) Acquire the evolution of the Lebanese
agriculture, and (3) establish an exhaustive database of agricultural exploitations that
could be used as a basis for surveys for various field studies pertaining to the
agricultural sector.
The Fayhaa
Municipal Union Observatory was initiated a tool to help the municipal union (within the
City of Tripoli, North Lebanon) in the management of environment issues. Its main
objectives are to (1) present a better understanding of the current state of environment
and development in the area, (2) identify gaps and provide information to fill these gaps,
(3) avoid overlapping in information collection, disseminating and sharing gathered
information and making it available to local authorities as well as (4) building a solid
base to encourage partnership and collaboration among municipalities in the area and other
organisations of the civil society. The Fayhaa Municipal Union Observatory launched the
air-monitoring laboratory in April 2000, which is equipped to measure air emissions from
mobile sources and industrial activities.
EUMEDIS
Initiative, an EU programme that will create a network of Mediterranean Information
Society Focal Points, will fund the internet-based interconnection between the European
Research network and the Mediterranean research networks as well as pilot information
society projects. The programme will tackle five key sectors: (1) Information and
Communication Technologies (ICT), applied to education; (2) Electronic commerce and
economic cooperation; (3) Networks for health; (4) Multimedia access to cultural heritage
and tourism; (5) ICT applied to industry and innovation.
A survey is currently carried out by the
Central Administration for Statistics and UNICEF on the health sector. This study
incorporates a section on the relationship between health, environment and environmental
degradation.
An
Agricultural Planning and Policy Preparation (APP) will be established at the Ministry of
Agriculture and financed by EU. This programme will establish the required information
technology-systems, databases, management information systems, and will identify and
formulate important sector programme packages and finance priority packages.
The National Programme for Improving Living Conditions of the Poor in Lebanon is a project funded by UNDP and executed by the Ministry of Social Affairs. One of the objectives of this project is to reinforce the characteristics of the poor in Lebanon. In this respect, a “mapping of living conditions in Lebanon” was produced which identified regional disparities and priority needs and gaps for a national and comprehensive approach for reducing poverty. Moreover, around 26 information booklets were produced with the Social Science Department of the Lebanese University. Each booklet provide demographic, social, economic and other information concerning each Caza (district) in Lebanon.
Status
The computer-mediated communication is very competitive now in Lebanon, and especially in the private sector. This communication is constantly subject to changes and competitiveness enabling the accommodation of the latest information technologies (availability of required infrastructures, reliability and competitiveness of services, cost-effectiveness of these services). Public at large is considered the beneficiary number one from the services provided by these commercial companies that provide internet connections and subscription, and services through launching internet-cafés that are increasing every day in terms of number and geographic expansion. The webpages of these companies expose various types of data (politics, social, weather, and others). One last point to mention is that the high competitiveness between electronic communication companies (counted to be 15 operational companies today) allowed an increase in rate of subscribers willing to connect for low prices, thus enabling almost more than 75% of the Lebanese population to get access to information on the national and international level.
As for the public sector, available databases and networks are inefficiently used due to shortage in staffing at the public institutions, the competitiveness between companies and mainly the consultancy firms, which makes hard the information gathering process, and most of all, the relative high ages among the public institutions’ staff, which is highly influencing the desire to learn and benefit from the use of new technologies. Local authorities are newly established, therefore, they are still under process of equipping their institutions with the necessary electronic communication systems.
Available information are managed or
used as following:
-
Since 1995, a remarkable increase of
interest was noted in media (mainly newspapers and TV news) regarding environment-related
issues. Pointing out to major challenges facing environment and development has no doubt
assist in quoting information and references especially from decision-making level, as
well as increase awareness at public level. It is to note here that most newspapers have
established web pages and archived their articles (including environmental) according to
topics.
-
There is a tremendous package of
information owned by private consultancy firms that are not disseminated and most of the
time classified as confidential.
-
Information in ministries is available
on almost all issues pertaining to sustainable development, however these are scattered in
the Ministries in charge (water, energy, health, etc.) and hardly accessible. Some
ministries activated their web page by including important data such as the Ministry of
Agriculture, the Ministry of Environment, as well as the Council for Development and
Reconstruction; however information is not always updated.
-
Many commercial web providers have (and
still) established general data on Lebanon on their web page, but data remain basic and
require a further in-depth.
-
The Ministry of Environment is working
on filling this gap through LEDO, establishment of webpages relative to hosted
international projects, its Services and Departments, its library, documents, and web
site. Universities, research centers and NGOs are also engaged in this process to
alleviate this gap.
-
The United Nations Development
Programme, through the Environment Department and related web page;
-
The Council for Development and
Reconstruction through the library, an information center and website;
-
Environmental NGOs and facilities
provided (websites, libraries, newsletters, etc.).
-
The Environment Information Center and
its library.
Availability of sustainable development information at the national level:
| Agenda 21 Chapters | Very good | Good | Some good data but many gaps | Poor | |
| 2. | International cooperation and trade | X |
|||
| 3. | Combating poverty | X |
|||
| 4. | Changing consumption patterns | X |
|||
| 5. | Demographic dynamics and sustainability | X |
|||
| 6. | Human health | X |
|||
| 7. | Human settlements | X |
|||
| 8. | Integrating E & D in decision-making | X |
|||
| 9. | Protection of the atmosphere | X |
|||
| 10. | Integrated planning and management of land | X |
|||
| 11. | Combating deforestation | X |
|||
| 12. | Combating desertification and drought | X |
|||
| 13. | Sustainable mountain development | X |
|||
| 14. | Sustainable agriculture and rural development | X |
|||
| 15. | Conservation of biological diversity | X |
|||
| 16. | Biotechnology | X |
|||
| 17. | Oceans, seas, coastal areas and their living | X |
|||
| 18. | Freshwater resources | X |
|||
| 19. | Toxic chemicals | X |
|||
| 20. | Hazardous wastes | X |
|||
| 21. | Solid wastes | X |
|||
| 22. | Radioactive wastes | X |
|||
| 24. | Women in sustainable development | X |
|||
| 25. | Children and youth | X |
|||
| 26. | Indigenous people | ||||
| 27. | Non-governmental organizations | X |
|||
| 28. | Local authorities | X |
|||
| 29. | Workers and trade unions | X |
|||
| 30. | Business and industry | X |
|||
| 31. | Scientific and technological community | X |
|||
| 32. | Farmers | X |
|||
| 33. | Financial resources and mechanisms | X |
|||
| 34. | Technology, cooperation and capacity-building | X |
|||
| 35. | Science for sustainable development | X |
|||
| 36. | Education, public awareness and training | X |
|||
| 37. | International cooperation for capacity-building | X |
|||
| 38. | International institutional arrangements | X |
|||
| 39. | International legal instruments | X |
|||
| 40. | Information for decision-making | X |
|||
Challenges
Despite of this administrative structure, a lack of coordination and information dissemination is highly noticed.
Ministries, UN agencies, universities and others are conducting yearly hundreds of studies that are mostly shelved without being disseminated to other concerned entities, although the dissemination of these references is crucial due to the fact that information management pertaining to environment and environment-related sectors is still in its early stages in Lebanon, in contrast with information relative to social, financial and commercial purposes that are gathered, processed and sometimes updated on a yearly basis.
All sectors are in urgent need to be
assessed and updated based on an assessment of the current level of information
availability, accuracy and quality. Water, air, energy, land-use, marine and terrestrial
biodiversity are perfect examples for illustrating these needs. This improvement
would also entail mapping and monitoring data using the available and adequate
technologies.
Mapping
of sea water quality
Mapping
of hotspots relative to air pollution in the different regions
Cost
of environmental degradation and rehabilitation
Mapping
of wastewater networks
Mapping
and monitoring of forests.
In the same workshop, the Ministry of Electrical and Hydraulic Resources pointed out to the importance of monitoring
wastewater treatment plans and plants all over Lebanon with emphasis on the selection of criteria and levels of treatment.The. regions or groups that have the
greatest needs for improved access to information include:
-
Inhabitants of remote rural areas.
-
Municipalities (especially that they
have been elected in 1998 after more than 25 years). These municipalities are in need for
an oriented and intensive capacity building programmes on how to collect, store, manage
and share data needed by all ministries to build integrated strategies.
- NGOs to carry out a proper lobbying.
Indicators are currently in the
process of being developed. Therefore a certain number of obstacles should be removed to
ensure a better understanding and application of these tools especially on the
decision-making level. These obstacles are:
-Shortage in technical staff in
most of government agencies, which result in most cases in a weak coordination system
among these institutions; and the need to build the capacity of existing staff;
-
The overlapping in the mandates of some
government agencies;
-
The lack of a common nomenclature to
standardize data on the governmental level;
-
The non-adoption of the Code of the
Environment until this moment;
- The lack of a national strategy for management information;
- Lack of intensive capacity building programmes, these being restricted to the groups targeted by the implemented projects.
Capacity-building, Education, Training and Awareness-raising
In addition to LEDO which
objectives are to provide a better management information system at national level,
several projects/ activities are carried out by non-governmental organizations targeting
the national level, but with a specific focus on population living in rural areas.
The Environment Information
Center (EIC) is a project funded initially by UNDP-LIFE programme in 1995. Affiliated to
the Society for the Protection of Nature in Lebanon, its mandate is to gather and
disseminate data relevant to environment and development, mainly in the areas of
environmental education. Its small library allows students and teachers to benefit from
the available references. Also, EIC provides lectures, seminars and field sessions in all
areas with a focus on remote rural areas.
The Arz Al-Chouf Society is
responsible for the Barouk Cedar Reserve (500 km2). One tool to educate
inhabitants living in the 13 villages forming the reserve as well as the Reserve visitors
is the opening of an information center that provides services in presenting information
on the reserve, the food products produced in the premises of the reserves and the
neighborhood, as well as field visits.
The Association for Forest
Development and Conservation (AFDC) inaugurated a permanent exhibition center where
environmental NGOs expose their work and the inhabitants living in the neighborhood of the
Association exhibit their food products that are pesticide-free. In addition, a library
focusing on forestry and forest fires is available for public use.
Finally, the UNDP- Lebanon Country Office organized a UNDP MEDIA Award for Sustainable Human Development, a contest open to all Lebanese Journalists. This contest was organized under the patronage of the Minister of Information and in cooperation with the Press Syndicate and the Journalists Association. The overall objective was to raise awareness and to promote SHD and to encourage media to become partners and allies for increased and positive reporting on development and allies for advocacy. The Media award was launched respectively in 1997 and 1999. This award was made possible by sponsorship of private sector.
Many national and local initiatives
pertaining to sustainable development are usually organized to sensitize general public on
a given subject for a definite duration (that might vary from one day to a week). The
promotion for the use of information is indirectly targeted, being highlighted in the
framework of the activity in question. For this purpose, all available tools are designed,
used and disseminated, such as brochures, booklets, posters, models, etc. Also,
exhibitions and workshops are quite frequent for that matter. Some examples on the type of
activities using information promotion are the following:
-
National and international environment
days, e.g., the Environment Day, the Arab Environment Day, etc. where posters, TV spots
and interviews, newspapers, radio stations, public seminars, booklets and brochures are
used.
-
Campaigns for clean-up, reforestation,
campaigns organized by Ozone Office to protect from the sun negative impact on health,
etc. accompanied by TV, radio and newspaper coverage, brochures, booklets and posters;
Newspapers dedicate an environmental page on a daily basis, or once or twice per week.
-
Manifestations to protest against a
suggested law or decree, e.g. to promote green cover in urban areas, where petitions, TVs,
radio stations, newspapers and brochures are widely used.
-
Exhibitions where all previously
mentioned tools are used.
One last detail to highlight is that these tools usually include, in addition to the targeted message, the source of information, the reference group and the web site of the organizers.
Capacity building related to the collection and management of the information evolves in general on surveys, data collection based on site visits, electronic data processing and analysis, geographical information, etc. These tools are included in internationally funded projects and also applied by all government, non-government and academic institutions and agencies.
Information
The Sustainable Development Networking Program (SDNP) aims at promoting sustainable development and the implementation of Agenda 21 in Lebanon by facilitating increased access to information, knowledge and expert advice and by encouraging increased collaboration and communication between stakeholders at the national and international levels. It is designed to build capacity and train national stakeholders to become both consumers and suppliers of information at the Internet. Thr SDNP designed homepages for all ministries and environmental NGOs, and published an Internet guidebook encompassing all international electronic addresses needed to search for topics pertaining to sustainable development issues.The SDNP was initiated in 1996 and phased out in 1998. Many universities have developed expertise in the field of environment and sustainable development and can be considered centres of excellence in the region. NCSR has linked all universities to Internet, a national NGO (LARN) is supporting these efforts.
The Ministry of Environment’s
decisions, decrees and laws are published in the Official Gazette, thus ensuring proper
dissemination of the information.
The annual indicators developed by
Central Bank are used to analyzing the economical, social financial trends and evolution
in Lebanon, but also for planning and research purposes.
The indicators to be developed by LEDO will serve to assess the environmental situation on national level to be integrated into the policy-making and measure the impact of sectoral issues (solid waste, forestry, water sector, air pollution, biodiversity, etc.) on the environment.
The MoE website is a portel site: www.moe.gov.lb that provides access to the various
projects operated and operating at MoE premises.
The SDNP website is also a portel site:
www.sdnp.org.lb that provides access to other
government and non-government institutions working in the Country.
The American University of Beirut
website is: www.aub.edu.lb
The UNDP website is also a portel site: www.undp.org.lb
Research and Technologies
The Remote Sensing Center is a
part of the National Council for Scientific Research. Its mandate is to gather and analyze
data collected through satellite images to be made available to concerned institutions.
A Business Information Centre
was launched by the Investment and Development Authority of Lebanon (IDAL) that would
supply all stakeholders and mainly the Ministry of Environment with data on future
investment projects to assess any needs or requirements for studies on environment impact
assessment.
Euro
Info Correspondence Centre (EICC) at the Beirut Chamber of Commerce, Industry and
Agriculture. The main objective of the centre is to provide Lebanese businessmen with
information on the European Union market and European businessmen.
New technologies being developed to improve methods of data collection related to sustainable development include:
-
Remote sensing
techniques (satellite images);
-
The air monitoring equipment at the Directorate
of Civil Aviation, Meteorologic Department, to detect, process and store information
pertaining to atmospheric changes;
-
The
laboratory for stack emissions and ambient air at the Ministry of Environment to record
and update changes on urban air pollution.
In addition to very advanced equipment at the premises of the Industry Institute and the Marine Research Institute to carry out needed tasks.
The techniques used for continuous and
accurate data storage, management, and assessment include the following:
- Satellite images using LAND SAT
thematic mapper;
-
Visual basic programming to automate
and process data;
-
Software for Environment database
(ENDO) in English and Arabic;
-
Creation of CD-ROM’s on indicators
to be published and disseminated (2002 by LEDO).
All latest technologies pertaining to information system are available in the Country; the manufacturing companies or their agents being based in Lebanon. Therefore, what is needed is to overcome the obstacles mentioned in answers to question no. 21.
Financing
Budgets/cost of some projects which
were identified are as follows::
LEDO: 370.000 US$ (EU funding).
SDNP: 256.000 US$ (UNDP funding).
Desertification database: 500.000
Deutsche mark (GTZ financing).
The Implementation of the Institutional
Development Strategy for Lebanon: 2.516.556 US$ (UNDP, CIDA, UNESCO and government funds).
External assistance disbursement on
General statistics (for development administration): 113.000 US$ (year 1999- CDR sources).
External assistance disbursement on
general cartography: 46.000 US$ (year 2000- CDR sources)
Stack air monitoring equipment:
500.000 US$ (government budget).
Ambient air monitoring equipment:
500.000 US$ (government budget).
Measures taken to increase the volume
of investment in development and/or improving the national information system related to:
- A thorough follow-up of the Ministry
of Environment to international funds;
- Formulation project proposals to be
financed mainly by GEF, EU, GTZ and UNDP.
- The offices of the international
agencies in the Country help in increasing the volume of investments regarding the
information system, this would be part of an overall programme that would also include
institutional strengthening, legislation, capacity building and other.
In addition, it is worth noting that Lebanon hosts a number of missions and international organizations such as the United Nations Regional Office for Education, Science and Culture in the Arab Countries, the United Nations Commission for Refugees, Food and Agriculture Office of the United Nations
, the World Health Organization, the United Nations Fund for Childhood, United Nations Development Program and the Arab Center for Legal and Judicial Research affiliated to the Arab League. The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) relocated its headquarters to Beirut in October, 1997 and the World Bank opened an office in Beirut in January, 2000. The presence of these organizations assists tremendously in increasing volume of investments that would tackle among other the information sector.Cooperation
The MEDSTAT is an EU-financed
project aiming at harmonizing the statistics of the European Union and its Mediterranean
partners. Some priority areas were tackled namely tourism, migration, transport, external
trade, environment and information systems. This project is implemented by the Central
Administration for Statistics, in close collaboration with LEDO.
Another programme financed by EU is the Assistance to the Rehabilitation of the Lebanese Administration (ARAL). This programme aims at supporting the Lebanese Administration to implement the National Administrative Rehabilitation Programme (NARP) both at central and local level. In particular, this programme will concentrate on central government agencies, ministries, public utilities and local government and Services. This programme will put in place the basis for data standardization.
A thorough collaboration exists between all ministries and line institutions as well NGOs and the international agencies namely UNDP, UNEP, GEF and the World Bank due to the establishment of internationally funded projects at the premises of these institutions, a matter that keeps information exchanged almost at regular basis.
Sharing information on bilateral, regional and international levels are being made through (1) participation in conferences, seminars and training, (2) filling questionnaires requested by various international entities, such as UNCSD guidelines, (3) invitation of international organizations to contribute to the national experience, such as the workshop organized by LEDO where
international representation was ensured through the participation of the European Environment Agency, The Mediterranean Action Plan (Blue Plan), The Center for Environment and Development for the Arab Region and Europe (CEDARE) and the Ministry of Environment Affairs in Syria, (4) fulfilling the obligations required by the Conventions ratified by the Lebanese Government, such as the Climate Change Convention (studies on national GHG emissions, assessment of Lebanon’s vulnerability to Climate Change), the Montreal Protocol (status and levels of Ozone depleting substances), the Desertification and the Biodiversity (National report of biodiversity- 9 volumes). Finally, sharing information in bilateral cooperation is made available through reports and policies provided by the funding agencies, for instance, the Common Cooperation Framework (CCF) of the UNDP programme.
* * *
This information is based on Lebanon's submission to the 5th and 9th Sessions of the
Commission on Sustainable Development. Last update: November 2000.
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