A visit to the beautiful mountains of Dreib area will reveal the high potential of ecotourism and its development which can tackle the consequences of the deepening economic crisis of the last decade according to Economic Experts. Tourism promotion activities conducted under MASAR aimed at ensuring inclusion of local communities and raising their awareness while tightening cooperation between local governments and national level institutions. It also aimed at:
– Facilitating local economic development of Dreib area through targeting Lebanese tourists.
– Creating job opportunities for employees of the sector (tourist guides) or owners of local businesses.
– Raising awareness of the local communities about their archaeological and cultural heritage.
– Facilitating better protection of the sites on the part of local municipalities through raising their awareness on maintenance good practices.
Many activities under this project were executed by PCPM (in cooperation with the General Directorate of Antiquities) to reach those objectives. In May and June 2021, the first inventory of cultural, natural, historical and archaeological sites in the area was prepared in cooperation with the local governments. Three touristic trails across the Dreib Unions of Municipalities (one in each Union) were chosen with the Unions with the support of an Archaeological Expert:
1- Haitla old village in Dreib El Ghraby
2- Kweshra old village in Dreib El Awsat
3- Adaket old olive press in Akkar El Chemaly
Rehabilitation of the selected sites was launched in December 2021.
Additional Activities
Improving touristic marketing and strengthening local entrepreneurs in the touristic sector was the next step following the suggestion of our Local Economic Development Expert. That includes a tourist e-marketing training for entrepreneurs and preparation of touristic promotional materials about the area while ensuring better online visibility of the region.
Towards Project Sustainability
MASAR and the local governments explore the possibility of establishing a touristic office in the area under the patronage of the Ministry of Tourism.
Furthermore, the awareness activities will contribute to the local communities’ better awareness of the archaeological and heritage value of their area. Then creating a touristic map and promotional campaigns for the area will increase the national level recognition of Dreib as touristic destination in Lebanon.
On the technological level, the use of the available technologies for managing information about the identified and future sites (GIS systems) will support the Municipalities in their maintenance in the future.