Tawfik Daboussi, President of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry, and Agriculture in Tripoli and the North, received Engineer Muhammad Ali Qabbani, President of the Council for Development and Reconstruction, and the Council’s Vice President, Dr. Ibrahim Shahrour. The expanded meeting was attended by: Ibrahim Fawz and Nakhil Yamin (Vice Presidents of the Chamber), Dr. Abdul Hamid Karima (Mayor of Tripoli), Engineer Wael Zemerli (President of the Federation of Al Fayhaa Municipalities), Marwan Daher (Head of the Bar Association in the North), Dr. Ibrahim Muqaddasi (Head of the Doctors Syndicate), Dr. Milad Dib (Head of the Dentists Syndicate), Dr. Hani Shaarani (Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Rashid Karami International Fair), Engineer Iskandar Bandali (Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Port of Tripoli), Dr. Hassan Dinnawi (Head of the Special Economic Zone in Tripoli), Nasri Moawad (President of BIAT Association), Alan Chatri (Director of the United Nations Development Program in the North), Dima Homsi (Director of the Federation of Al Fayhaa Municipalities), Linda Sultan (Director General of the Chamber), and Dr. Khaled Al-Omari (Director of Quality Laboratories at the Chamber).
At the beginning of the meeting, Daboussi welcomed Engineer Qabbani and affirmed that “Greater Tripoli possesses a significant wealth of strengths and strategic potentials that require an effective and systematic partnership with the Council for Development and Reconstruction as a working basis, based on defining clear priorities in terms of developmental, humanitarian, and social dimensions, and addressing national projects.”
Daboussi emphasized that “The Greater Tripoli Chamber constitutes an active national partner in creating comprehensive and sustainable development,” explaining that “The Chamber’s vision is based on integrated national strategic and investment projects, stemming from a firm conviction that real development begins with integration between the state and its institutions on one hand, and the economic and social sectors on the other.”
Daboussi concluded by affirming that “The Chamber’s projects, foremost of which is the vision project represented by the integrated national economic system, constitute a practical framework that aligns with the pivotal role played by the Council for Development and Reconstruction in the fields of planning and implementation,” stressing that “The Chamber places all its capabilities, expertise, and potentials at the disposal of the Council for Development and Reconstruction.”
After that, the participants presented a series of interventions in which they reviewed the challenges facing their institutions from their point of view, emphasizing the need to address the state of stagnation suffered by public institutions at the level of infrastructure, buildings, and equipment.
In his intervention, Dr. Ibrahim Shahrour, Vice President of the Council for Development and Reconstruction, stressed that the Tripoli landfill file “must be given top priority due to the serious environmental risks it entails, confirming that the Council for Development and Reconstruction is dealing with this issue with the utmost seriousness and responsibility.”
For his part, Ibrahim Fawz, Vice President of the Chamber, pointed out that “The next stage requires a new model in developmental and institutional work based on integration, harmony, and coordination, and the absence of any negative competitive spirit between the concerned components.” He affirmed that “The Greater Tripoli Chamber firmly believes in the necessity of preparing a comprehensive guiding plan that covers all facilities and institutions, away from unilateral approaches,” stressing that “The current challenges can only be faced in a spirit of partnership, in a way that guarantees the service of national projects for all of Lebanon.” (National Agency)
