BAALBECK: The giant columns that rise against the Baalbeck skyline serve as a timeless reminder of worlds long past. Behind them stretch the ruins of the ancient Roman city of Heliopolis, a major historical site competing with anything to be found in Greece or Rome. Yet this natural resource – a potential magnet for regional and international tourism – remains untapped and unexploited, said Nick Hartman, resident representative for the UN Development Program (UNDP). 

Hartman made his comments Wednesday, alongside Belgian Ambassador Johan Verkamen and Mayor Bassam Raad, at the inauguration of 15 newly constructed kiosks in and around Baalbek’s prinicipal tourism sites. The kiosks are part of UNDP’s Art Gold Initiative, in participation with the Baalbeck Municipality and the Lebanese Council for Development and Reconstruction, to strengthen the city’s tourism sector, thus creating jobs and strengthening the city’s economy. 

The kiosks, as components of a basic tourist infrastructure, will help to bolster Baalbek’s reputation and increase the flow of sightseers, said Verkamen. “More infrastructure means more tourists, more tourists means more generated income and a stronger local economy.”  

Pine-walled, with sloping roofs and paneled doorways, the kiosks make a pleasant contrast to the backdrop of Baalbeck’s ancient history. The 15 structures were built and installed exclusively by local labor, and will operate under the ownership and maintenance of the Baalbeck municipality. Local residents, many who had previously operated tourism enterprises out of vans, tents, or make-shift shacks, were pre-selected by the city and UNDP Art Gold to rent out the kiosks as a new base of operations. 

Funding for the project was shared between Belgian government, which donated $50,000, and the Municipality of Baalbeck, which donated $10,000. 

Belgium has been active in the region since the July war in 2006, when Israeli bombardment destroyed many of Baalbeck’s houses and much of it’s basic infrastructure. Then, Belgium funded a major temporary housing project to shelter displaced families and contributed to restoring basic necessities like clean water. 

“After the July war we were primarily concerned with improving peoples’ basic livelihood,” said Walid Atollah, Art Gold area manager for the Bekaa Region. “Now, thanks to funding from Belgium, we have been able to expand our operations to tackle long-term economic development projects.” 

Hartman pointed out that while most development work focused on the South following the war, UNDP has always taken a National approach to the development, and understands that there are priorities in the North – including the Baalbeck region – as well. “We are pleased to be present throughout Lebanon,” he said. 

The Baalbeck-Belgium partnership is part of Art Gold’s initiative link territorial development partnerships between regions of Lebanon and European communities. Germany and Italy, among others, have also contributed to separate development projects in cooperation with Art Gold Lebanon. 

By working with a wide network of partnerships between regional development actors, external governments and organizations and local citizens, the project exemplifies the idea of decentralized cooperation. In this farmework, there is no central authority dispensing aid unilaterally – instead, internal and external forces work as partners. This approach is essential to engaging both public and private stakeholders abroad and the local communities who will undertake and maintain the projects, according to Art Gold. 

The project’s ultimate objective will be sustainability, Hartmen said. “At the end of the day, we identify this as the project’s priority: that when we step back, the local governance and population will sustain this possibility into the future.” 

Verkamen told The Daily Star that sustainability would require building trust and partnership between the managing organizations and their regional counterparts. He later joked that with proper oversight, the kiosks could outlast the Heliopolis. 

Rehabilitating small-scale, local infrastructure is just one phase in the process, according to Art Gold. The kiosks are a tangible example of the kinds of work the organization wants to achieve; however, much of its work is done in the form of professional training, improving the functioning of local governance, enhancing basic economic services and strengthening coordination between public, private and civil sectors. 

But for the day, it was a festive first step. A troupe of dan­cers, spinning swords and spears and pounding drums, met the delegation in the street and led them to the base of the Heliopolis site, where three Kiosks were just being completed. 

“All who passed through this city – Phoenicians, Romans, Ottomans – left secrets behind them,” said Mayor Bassam Raad, gesturing with a sweep of his arm towards the ancient ruins. “Now, we hope to unveil those secrets to the world.”