By Najib Saab, Issue 28-29, July - August 2000

As grand plans are being developed to rebuild south Lebanon, "international sales representatives" from a variety of agencies are flocking the country to promote their catalogue products and services, based on a pre-conceived model of development. While international experience and financial support are essential, development projects should be designed to suit the needs of the people concerned, not the agendas of foreign experts, agencies and their local associates. The reconstruction of the liberated south should be seen as an opportunity to introduce integrated development concepts, based on capacity building of the rural communities, and involving people as real partners in planning and execution. This includes taking environmental considerations into account at the planning stage, to ensure that rush bandage solutions do not produce self-destructive effects in the future.

The occupation had destroyed a lot of the natural features in southern Lebanon. Every heavy bomb uprooted 72 cubic meters of soil. Explosives bared the land in many locations, poisoned soil and underground water resources, destroyed springs, demolished irrigation tanks and aqueducts, and ruined archeological sites. The Israelis also dredged whole orchards to facilitate military assaults and even stole tons of fertile soil. Land mines remain the occupation's worst remnant, leaving behind hundreds of thousands of land mines, traps and ammunition that have still not been detonated, and whose clean-up remains a priority because they put people's lives, animal and wild life in danger, and impede the development of large areas of land.

Contrasting this grim picture, wars may have a positive effect on the environment in some cases, since military operations hinder development activities, thereby preserving the virginity of some areas. As we work on repairing the environmental destruction of the occupation, we have to prevent the assault of stone quarries and uncontrolled cement, chemical and other factories, under the banners of economic development and job opportunities.

However, does it mean that in order to protect the environment, development must be stopped? The answer is, definitely, no. The fact is that balanced development protects the environment, as much as preserving the environment supports development and the economy and creates sustainable jobs.

Southerners themselves have to be a part of every development plan. They have to beware the legions of "experts" who will flood the area, from every agency, organization and government, to promote ready-made solutions. Outside experience has to work hand in hand with the local residents and reach solutions that are in accordance with their state of affairs and special needs. The keyword here is to promote practical samples in rural development, based on technologies appropriate for the area. The solution does not lie in centralized plans and projects which alienate local communities; it is to actually include the villagers in the planning process and execution of rural development schemes. The government should also commit to the creation of productive projects in the south which create sustainable income opportunities, not temporary aid.

It is a fact that most existing aid programs are based on providing ready made solutions and equipment without helping to find local production venues that are self sufficient, through training people and developing local resources. This of course leads to continued dependency on others. Therefore, true development cannot be achieved as long as the South does not have the technological capacity to control its resources and use them to the benefit of its inhabitants.

Most assistance projects at the time being are based on regarding local societies as "receivers" only, and not "interactive". Even the term "stake-holders" which was introduced by the United Nations agencies in the last decade to reflect involvement of the populace, turned out to portray them, again., as figures with no individual human identity. Donor governments and organizations often regard rural development simply as direct transmission of solutions and technologies, specified without the participation of the beneficiaries. Therefore, most "technological recipes" that have been adopted are not suited to the local inhabitant's needs and cannot be implemented using the materials and skills available locally.

Let's promote for the South a concept in appropriate technology different from the typical practices, in the sense that it is not only satisfied with specifying the urgent material needs, but surpasses that to define the technological, natural and human resources available locally and that could be transmitted effectively to suit the requirements of the local society. If appropriate technological concepts are to be spread among the people who desperately need them, that is the inhabitants of rural areas, a local training system has to be developed and widely spread, through which villagers can be rehabilitated technically and administratively to take charge of appropriate technology projects themselves, thereby bearing the responsibility of developing their societies. These training activities have to be implemented inside the rural communities with the participation of local residents at all stages.

Appropriate technology enables the rural poor in underprivileged areas to develop and use technologies and methods that allow them more control over resources and contribute to long-term development for their societies. Those appropriate solutions enable them to use local materials, skills and develop deep rooted traditions, to create projects homogeneous with their environment. Since appropriate technology depends on training people to be in charge of production, it lacks the support of large commercial companies, which depend on selling equipment and ready material to a consumer society. There is a sort of silent agreement between large companies and the local feudal powers to prevent the benefits of production resources from reaching rural areas, so that the people remain controlled by political and economic feudalism.

How can we put integrated rural development theories into action in the South? The starting point is launching projects with the people's participation, relying on developing local expertise and production base, not on contingent help and first aid. To illustrate this approach, some specific activities could be suggested:

-          Establishing pilot centers to promote renewable energy from the sun, wind, and biogas to heat water and generate power. This includes training local technicians to build and maintain those systems. This also includes establishing a research center for applications of alternative energy, that attracts scientists and researchers to the heart of the South. This has to be complimented by helping local technicians, mechanics and small investors to establish workshops to produce solar heating, drying and cooking devices, and building biogas digesters and wind turbines. The Middle East Center for Appropriate Technology (MECTAT) has built a pilot digester to produce biogas in Marj'eoun, where the organic wastes of a chicken and cow farm and a greenhouse could be disposed to ferment. Besides solving the farm's waste problem, the digester produced methane gas, which is used to heat the greenhouse and generate electricity, as well as using its remnants as organic fertilizer.

-          Introducing organic farming methods that depend on integrated pest management and natural fertilizers, and promoting the South's produce as environmentally healthy. This attracts more customers and gives the products a unique identity. Organic farming is now popular in Europe and its produce is sold for a higher price than that which uses chemical fertilizers and pesticides extensively. Achieving this goal can be done by training the farmers to use organic farming technologies, and establishing cooperatives to develop and sell the products under the logo: "Organic products from the liberated South of Lebanon". A meeting of the German-Arab Chamber of Commerce which I recently attended in Berlin has called on Arab farmers to produce more organic products for export, in answer to increasing public demand in Europe.

-          Promoting small-scale food production, based on preserving and packaging food appropriately, methods which could be applied successfully at the level of small family plants. The solar dryer that was built last year by MECTAT in Al-Ain (Baalbek), as a part of a YMCA project, is a good example of an inexpensive appropriate technology that can support rural food production and create income.

-          Using appropriate methods for waste treatment, that suit the region's social and natural characteristics, and provide work opportunities and protect the environment. The waste treatment plant in the southern village of Kfarseer is an example of a technology that was developed according to the region's needs, and works efficiently operated by trained local residents.. All the machinery for waste separation and composting was be built locally, and the plant is capable of composting 5 tons of organic waste daily, constituting around 70% of the total waste generated by a community of 15,000. This successful endeavor could be repeated in communities all over the South. A low-cost waste water treatment plant, recently built by Mercy Corps in the southern Wazzani village, is yet another example of an efficient technology using local material and skills to solve a chronic environmental health problem.

-          Investing in the unique natural characteristics of the South to develop environmentally-friendly tourism, that can attract visitors from all over the world. The liberated South can be transformed into an international resort for eco-tourism.

Preserving the environment of south Lebanon requires, first, a detailed survey for the current situation, to identify sensitive areas and establish priorities and long-term work plan. In addition, a serious environmental impact assessment study should be imposed on any major scheme or project being prepared for the South, so as not to demolish the environment by high profile projects geared to public relations and instant visible results. Hence, our proposal to establish a center for appropriate technology in the south, that trains the citizens in developmental skills and protects the environment at the same time.

Traditional development policies have underestimated the potential of local societies, and deemed them incapable of taking charge of their destiny. They presented them with packaged solutions that had, in the best of cases, the effect of temporary pain relievers, causing these policies to fail. We should demand a new approach, based on developing human resources and providing local communities with the means to be productive. This is the only way to stop being at the mercy of aid agencies and local feudalism, and ultimately to become their own masters.

We have reclaimed the south, so let's preserve the environment and support the population to become productive, to prove that we deserve the land.