National Expert in Beekeeping

Polish Center for International AID (PCPM) is seeking a National Expert in Beekeeping.

MASAR for Local Governments is a programme funded by the EU MADAD trust fund and implemented in Lebanon and Iraq. The overall aim of the programme is to strengthen the long-term resilience of targeted subnational governments and their host, refugee and IDP populations to deal with displacement.

MASAR has three objectives:

To improve the capacities of subnational governments to engage in holistic, area-based planning and consider different scenarios that respond to the needs of host, refugee and IDP populations.

To improve service delivery to generate greater social stability outcomes based on the needs of host, refugee and IDP populations.

To empower subnational governments and service providers to facilitate local economic development and to have better access to municipal investment that benefit the extension of safe public services and create economic opportunities for host, refugee and IDP populations.

Aim of this assignment

In the last decade, the Dreib region has faced economic challenges resulting from unemployment, displacement and, most recently, the country-wide financial crisis as well as the Covid-19 pandemic. Persistence of these challenges has durably impacted demographics, social relations, income generating activities, market dynamics and consumer behaviour. Opportunities for long-term employment belong to the most urgent needs of the local communities, and their vulnerable members.

MASAR addresses this need through collaboration with the local governments, cooperatives and experts on local economic development (LED) pilot projects design and implementation. One of the results of such a collaboration has been a project aiming at developing the local capacities in beekeeping and bee products.

Beekeeping and the related food production have a significant development potential in the area considering the natural environment, the already functioning beekeepers’ cooperatives, a relatively short time of specialized training required for newcomers to the sector and the high market value of bee products. The strengths of the sector in Dreib include also high standards of beekeeping set and monitored by the Union of Cooperatives of Beekeepers of Akkar and the potential synergy between the beekeeping and tourism sectors.

Fuller realization of this sector’s development potential requires, among others developing the capacities of the local beekeepers in production of high-end bee products, their labeling, marketing and sales.  

The Expert should work towards the achievement of these goals in close cooperation with Experts carrying out comlementary consultancies, especially the Local Expert in Beekeeping (LEB) responsible for delivering technical training on basic beekeeping (to beginners) and on bee queens production (to experienced beekeepers) in the area.