20 Lebanese entrepreneurs win ILO competition for best business idea

Beirut [Lebanon], October 15: Twenty Lebanese entrepreneurs won an UN-organized competition that granted them a cash prize for launching businesses in disadvantaged regions of the country, the International Labor Organization (ILO) announced Friday.
Most winners of the "Women do Business Experience" competition are women and young people, said the event's organizer, Beirut-based ILO regional office for Arab States, in a statement.
The competition was part of the Productive Sectors Development Programme (PSDP) funded by the UN-initiated Lebanon Recovery Fund and implemented by seven UN agencies including the ILO, to support gender-responsive job creation and economic opportunities in the agriculture and agri-food sectors.
The winners included producers of organic food, herbal oils, and olive oil. The assessment involved their preparedness, as well as the environmental and social dimensions of their projects, said the statement.
The competition started with training sessions provided by the ILO for hundreds of small business owners and entrepreneurs. After that, forty shortlisted candidates were picked by a jury for their business ideas.
PSDP Programme Coordinator Christel Hanna said the participants and their ideas inspired the UN agencies "to continue working on helping entrepreneurs and SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) owners in growing their businesses."
Source: Xinhua