The Cherry Sector in Lebanon: Results of a survey of cherry farmers and workers in the Bekaa, North and Mount Lebanon

This report presents and analyses data from a survey with 100 cherry farmers and 100 workers in the Bekaa, North and Mount Lebanon. The survey was conducted under the BOUZOUR project - “Building Inclusive Markets and Decent Work for Syrian Refugees and Lebanese Host Communities”, funded by the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida). The project focuses on the agriculture and agri-food sector as a key sector for the livelihoods of both Lebanese and Syrian vulnerable population groups and in particular women of both communities and aim to develop specific agricultural and agri-food value chains with potential for decent job creation that will benefit both groups.

The BOUZOUR project has conducted a full analysis of the cherry value chain in order to uncover constraints and opportunities and identify avenues for interventions to develop the chain and encourage growth and job creation in cherry production, processing and trading. This survey, commissioned by the ILO’s BOUZOUR project and conducted by the Consultation and Research Institute (CRI), aimed to collect more solid quantitative data to better understand the state of cherry farming as well as the situation and livelihoods of cherry farm workers in Lebanon.