Dareb el Najah

Summary

Dareb el Najah” is a follow on grant to EDF’s previous project “Back on the Map”, it was built on successes, lessons learned, and leveraged the relationships built during the first grant. Its design and components are in synergy with LIFE’s vision of Revitalization Hub initiative funded by USAID. This initiative, Quasi- Hub, was created in some vulnerable peri-urban areas in Lebanon in order to provide the most significant impact.

In “Darb el Najah” 3 organizations: Entrepreneurial Development Foundation (EDF), Michel Daher Social Foundation (MDSF) and The Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Zahle and the Beqaa (CCIAZ) worked in synergy in one concentrated area of Central Bekaa

Darb el Najah grant was signed on October 16, 2019, a day before the October 17th Revolution in Lebanon. What followed after that was the Covid-19 Crisis resulting in a total lockdown.

Despite the critical situation, EDF accepted the challenge and worked hard to continue the project, organizing the training by area to avoid the trainees’ absences, and then switching to online training, where we were the first organization to do it and successfully!

Objectives

sustain small scale businesses (startups or existing)

boost local economy by accelerating business cycles

improve synergy between ngos and stackholders for a higher impact

stimulate economic growth and creating jobs for a better social stability

raise awareness to support initiatives through financial inclusion

Achievements

Through this project, our main objective was to help entrepreneurs evolve into business leaders and improve economic opportunities of marginalized low-income microenterprises especially those led by Women. EDF was able to implement training workshops in 10 different villages for 10 different groups of beneficiaries, and 4 online trainings for 4 groups, on the following topics:

Capacity Building & Access to Finance

Photography and Social Media

Basic Quality and Food Safety Training

The participation of women and youth was impressive (63 % – 39%).

At the end of each training, attendees were getting the opportunity to showcase their products and in some instances to sell their products to each other.

Results

The trainees improved their skills in Management, Accounting, Marketing and Customer relations through learning how to have a daily register for their books, reduce costs and access new markets.

A representative from al Majmoua’a, MFI, attended the training to explain the conditions to have access to credit.

Trainees (50%) created social media platforms.

Trainees reported an increase in income as a result of the training.

New employees were recruited by 29 of our trainees.

Trainees obtained loans.

5 trainees moved their businesses from their homes to a shop.

As a Hub and based on the importance of coordinating with all stakeholders , we worked closely with many NGOs and associations, such as: Naser Club, Zahle Municipality, Qab Elias Municipality, Majed el Anjar Municipality, Anjar Municipality, and Deir el Ghazal Municipality.

In-Kind Grants

The Hub distributed in-kind grants for Saint Vincent de Paul in the total of $9,722 to equip their kitchen with all the needed equipment to be able to prepare big quantities of meals and distribute them to the most vulnerable families in the area. The HUB also distributed 132 in-kind grants for a total of $ 179,960.14 to MSMEs in Central Bekaa.

Certificates Distribution

The certificate distributions were done at MDSF, Anjar Municipality, Zahle Municipality, Qab Elias Municipality, Deir el Ghazal Municipality, Majed el Anjar Municipality, and Naser Club: Bar Elias.

Development of a Booklet: The Hidden Treasures of the Bekaa

Dareb El Najah Hub has completed the production of a booklet titled “THE HIDDEN TREASURE OF THE BEQAA” in both soft and hard copy versions. The objective of this booklet is to provide travel enthusiasts with a tool to explore and experience the best of the Bekaa while promoting a number of “Dareb El Najah” participants’ related businesses and startups. It is a marketing/exposure tool for the outreached businesses and various villages targeted under the Hub. The content includes a brief about each village, its characteristics, its specialty product(s), food service(s), etc., and a list of available businesses in each village of the targeted area.