مساحة الشركات الصغيرة والمتوسطة في الجمهورية اللبنانية

Strengthening Institutional Capacity for Lebanon's Cooperative Marketplace

📅 Date: 13 August 2026
🏷️ Theme: E-commerce | Cooperatives | Capacity-building | Digital Marketplace | Women-led Cooperatives

The ESCWA Technology Centre conducted a capacity-building programme for staff of the General Directorate of Cooperatives (GDC) at the Ministry of Agriculture to support the operationalization of the centralized digital marketplace developed by ESCWA in partnership with UNDP. The platform was designed to aggregate verified agricultural cooperatives, enhance the visibility of their products, and facilitate e-commerce transactions, with more than 25 cooperatives and over 110 products currently featured, the majority of which are women-led.

The training focused on equipping GDC staff with the technical and administrative skills required to independently manage and sustain the platform. Sessions covered marketplace administration, cooperative and product management, user support, content updates, and day-to-day platform operations, ensuring the Ministry is well positioned to oversee the marketplace and provide continued support to participating cooperatives following its launch.

ETC Contribution

The ESCWA Technology Centre provided:

Hands-on training for GDC staff on the administration and management of the digital marketplace.

Guidance on managing cooperative registrations, product listings, and marketplace content.

Capacity-building to strengthen the Ministry's ability to independently operate and maintain the platform.

Technical support to ensure the long-term sustainability of the marketplace and continued digital access for agricultural cooperatives, particularly women-led cooperatives.

Partners: General Directorate of Cooperatives (GDC), Ministry of Agriculture (Lebanon); United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)