POST-2006 LEBANON
The EU and MENA
Milking success in Lebanon Children helped by Mercy Corps in Lebanon. Photo: Cassandra Nelson
W
hen violence broke out in Lebanon in July 2006 attention naturally turned to the immediate emergency needs. Aid agencies responded quickly and efficiently – handing out food and water to those who needed it most and providing shelter for people who had lost their homes. Twenty months on, some of those charities, such as European-based development agency Mercy Corps, are still working in transitional Lebanese communities recovering from the war. One of the sectors hardest hit by the 2006 conflict were dairy farmers in the agricultural regions of Baalbek Caza and Hermel Caza in the Bekaa Valley. Their vulnerability and loss never made it into the media spotlight. The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) estimated that 60% of the farmers in Bekaa were affected by the July-August 2006 conflict. Baalbek Caza is a key dairy region and the FAO damage assessment reported that, as a result of the conflict, 3,050 head of dairy cattle were lost as well as 1,250 bulls and 15,000 goats and sheep. Direct financial losses related to dairy cattle
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April / May 2008
Award-winning UK charity Mercy Corps is helping Lebanese dairy farmers get back on their feet, writes Anna Clarkson alone are estimated at £1.91 million and loss of income from dairy production was more than £1.02 million. Mercy Corps, recipient of the 2008 Fast Company/Monitor Group Social Capital Award, has been working in partnership with the European Commission Humanitarian Aid department (ECHO) Zakia al-Shayah. Photo: Mercy Corps to reach out to dairy farmers who suffered severe economic loss from the war. The Emergency Economic Livelihood The war made it impossible for these Recovery Programme, they have been farmers to feed their livestock due to able to inspire lasting change for a lack of availability of feed during farmers who were struggling to survive the conflict. Animal neglect led to a after the war. They have helped them decline in overall livestock health, and face the challenges of recovery and loss of sales meant that 3,600 tonnes of rediscover their profitable farming cows’ milk and 50 tonnes of sheep and businesses. goat milk were wasted. One such farmer is Zakia From this gloomy outlook Mercy al-Shayah (pictured above). A widow Corps and ECHO have a success and mother of four, she has five cows, story to shout about. Through their three calves and a small piece of land, programme in the Bekaa Valley, called where she grows vegetables for homeSPONSORED FEATURE