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How the collaboration with the artist plans to revive the Lebanese fur trade | Business and Economic Affairs

Lack of resources affects many of Lebanon’s economic sectors that are experiencing difficulties. But the two most common are grass for grazing and Awassi sheep.

Indians in Lebanon, Awassi sheep produce a lot of wool – tons are lost every year, the United Nations estimates.

This was not always the case. The wool and textile industry in Lebanon prospered from the 1970s to the end of this century, but foreign and cheap wars from China disrupted previously healthy trade.

Now, all industries in Lebanon are trying to stay afloat amid a two-year economic crisis that has seen rising inflation, foreign reserves drying up and citizens taking to the streets to protest the government’s failure to stop the killings.

But in Bekaa Valley, a small group of women do not wait for the government to come to their aid. They do things with their own hands and use discarded Awassi wool to make handmade and eye-catching carpets to earn much-needed foreign exchange while creating sustainable livelihoods.

From growth to stability

Lebanon shipped cloth to Syria, Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Libya and the Gulf, independent economist Elie Yachoui told Al Jazeera. But trade set up after former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri’s leadership reduced foreign taxes from 35 percent to 5 percent in 2000, flooding the local market with cheap goods that cracked down on textile and wool companies, which Yachoui said are helping at least. 100,000 families.

“Lebanon had about 10 textile factories, about 200 textile factories, 15 hundred dye factories, and even thousands, of textile factories,” said Yachoui. “Once the nations changed, everything was closed. They could not compete with Chinese goods and sell all the machinery in Syria or some migrated to Egypt.

With no factories to offer in Lebanon, pastoralists in the Bekaa valley began sending almost all of their raw Awassi wool to Syria for repairs – until the war broke out there in 2011, closing or destroying factories in Aleppo and releasing sanctions that banned trade with Syria.

Indians in Lebanon, Awassi sheep produce a lot of wool – tons of it are discarded every year. [Courtesy of Adrian Pepe]

Although UN Comtrade data shows little change in the exports of textiles to Lebanon in the last 10 years, Yachoui said Awassi’s regional trade has not been taken by metric. The only sign that something had changed was the lack of any clothing sent to Syria after 2014, as a result of the controversy.

“Herdsmen would pack their wool in a pickup truck and smuggle it across the border, selling it directly to factories. None of this has been registered, but this is how Syrian wool reaches Syria, “Yachoui said. ena. “

But the production of Bekaa Valley fur comes from Bisat al Rih, a union of Aarsal women who make carpets using Awassi wool.

Established by Halima Al Hojairy, the partnership aims to provide employment – as well as a sustainable source of income – to local women and preserve the Lebanese livelihood skills by sharing with them the skills they have learned from their families.

“I wanted to help local families in Bekaa and create a small fleece market that meets in the village and surrounding areas,” Hojairy told Al Jazeera. “We are trying, as a partnership, to re-create the wool market, to find raw materials and to get people to buy directly from pastors.”

Bisat al Rih women weave a woolen rug [Courtesy of Adrian Pepe]

Currently, the union consumes about 250kg of Awassi wool per year. But Hojairy hopes the co-op will expand its production as well as commercially – outdoors and at home.

Lebanese pounds have lost more than 90 percent of their value against the United States dollar over the past two years, but this makes Lebanese exports as carpets more competitive. And while most people in Lebanon have little money for housing, Hojairy bet that those who can afford to sell their homes will have access to cheap local products.

“If we work on this, we can find a way to create a market around this,” said Hojairy, adding that the market will benefit not only life, but also the environment. “It takes a long time [for discarded wool] breaking down, ”he says,“ and it pollutes the environment. ”

Skills are possible

Fashion designer Adrian Pepe has been working with Bisat Al Rih on a project that seeks to showcase the potential of using modern materials such as Awassi wool. At the first stop of the coronavirus last year, Pepe spent several months in Aarsal getting to know local shepherds and learning about the extra fleas left over each year.

He recently unveiled a number of carpets made with Awassi wool saved at the Dubai Design Week show called Entangled Matters.

The garments use a number of woolen materials, following the evolution of the fabric from sheepskin to felt – already known fabrics – to weave woven wool into the fabric and fabric.

One of Adrian Pepe’s rugs made of Awassi wool, a design that is expected to inspire other manufacturers to adhere to his guidelines. [Courtesy of Adrian Pepe]

“In the past, [Lebanese wool] could not compete with international fur standards, because its materials are a bit more sophisticated, and then the production equipment became cheaper than natural, “he told Al Jazeera.” price, but no one knows. “

Pepe said the exhibition was designed to encourage other artists to use Awassi wool by showcasing “possible size and the same features”.

“It’s the first step in entering the business world and for me, it’s very important,” he said.

Pepe is also working on an awesome felt made from Awassi wool, teaching women at Bisat Al Rih how to feel – a skill he plans to use to renovate 300 tents at a Syrian refugee camp near Aarsal.

But economists say that in order to make a new effort to revitalize the Lebanese wool trade – as well as other lucrative industries – the government should set up a safe haven by avoiding previous regulations that have devastated local producers.

“The promotion of local products depends on raising prices to protect local goods, provide tax incentives for local farmers, finance imports, and boost foreign exports he is simply thinking about precious things. [such as] food, vegetables and cosmetics, “Group Chief Economist and Chief Executive Officer of Bank Audi Marwan Barakat told Al Jazeera.




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