Photo courtesy GATE Lebanon, © RET Germany

Article by Carine Harouny, Operations and Communications Officer for GATE Lebanon, RET Germany’s local implementing partner

AKKAR, LEBANON – Power cuts and the rising cost of running generators have become one of the biggest obstacles facing local organizations in Akkar, Lebanon. For associations and cooperatives working in tourism, protection, tailoring, and food processing, unreliable electricity means lost productivity, higher operating costs, and interrupted services to the communities that depend on them.

To address this, GATE Lebanon provided solar energy systems to eight local associations and cooperatives across Akkar: Akkar Trail, Dynamo Akkar, Koun Sadiqi, Sounaa El Hayat, Tasmim wa Irada, WCA, CEWU, and Lifestyle Vision.

Photo courtesy GATE Lebanon, © RET Germany

This support helps to:

• Keep operations running through ongoing power cuts
• Reduce dependence on costly generator fuel
• Increase productivity across a range of sectors
• Strengthen the long-term sustainability of local organizations
• Maintain consistent service delivery to communities in Akkar

By reducing energy costs and disruptions, these organizations can direct more of their resources toward the work itself, whether that’s running a tailoring cooperative, processing food, or protecting vulnerable groups. The result is a more resilient civil society in Akkar, one better equipped to weather the practical challenges of operating in Lebanon today.

The project “Improving Food Security, Livelihoods, and the Inclusion of Women and Vulnerable Groups, and Promoting Gender Equality in North Lebanon,” funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development of the Federal Republic of Germany (BMZ) and implemented by RET Germany in partnership with GATE Lebanon.

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