In 2014, the ILO launched the project “Enabling Job Resilience and Protecting Decent Work Conditions in Rural Communities Affected by Syrian Refugees Crisis in Northern Lebanon” funded with the ILO’s resources and by the Government of Italy, to alleviate the negative impact of the Syrian crisis in Lebanon. The project aimed to enhance the resilience of affected producers and workers in rural areas by increasing income generation and employment creation in the agricultural sector. This was achieved using the ILO’s Approach to Inclusive Market Systems (AIMS), a holistic and market-based livelihoods strategy that seeks to apply the “market systems” or “making markets work for the poor” approach to contexts of forced displacement.

In compliance with the AIMS methodology, an assessment was carried out to identify the most promising value chains in the region, under the criteria of potential for economic growth, relevance for the target groups and feasibility for potential interventions. The analysis found that the potato value chain in Akkar provided an untapped opportunity to export to the European Union, given that a derogation of the EU’s import ban on Lebanese potatoes had been negotiated years earlier.

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