User:Khalil Harfouche

Khalil Harfouche is the President of the Union of Jezzine Municipalities since 2010. In 2013 he was elected Mayor of Jezzine. Born in 1973, Harfouche was passionate in the environment and development since he was a child. He joined the boy scouts in 1985 where he got promoted fast until he became head of the Groupe Notre-Dame Furn-el-Chebback heading about 350 boy-scouts. For 16 years, he implemented many environmental projects with his colleagues. In 1991, he founded with a dozen of friends the students arm of the Free Patriotic Movement, a political group aiming at liberating Lebanon from the Syrian occupation. He was caught many times but never stopped his struggle along with his colleagues until the withdrawal of the Syrian army in 2005. In 2001 (at the age of 31) he ran for the municipal election in his hometown Jezzine after he the Israeli army withdrawal. He was the only one to win from the opposition list. He founded Jezzine festivals in 2002 and he headed the environment and festival committees. In 2005 he issued a book: "La mémoire de Jezzine", talking about Jezzine history and personalities. In 2010, he was elected President of The Union of Jezzine Municipalities where he put in place a new governance system based on dynamism, good planning and transparency. He launched with his colleagues the mayors of the Jezzine Region a visionary Strategic Plan aiming at transforming the Region into a model. In 2013, he was elected Mayor of Jezzine. During his mandate, he implemented many strategic projects among them: La Maison de la Forêt (a touristic resort), the Pine House, the Olive House and the Apple House (3 food processing and storage facilities) in addition to many infrastructure projects. Those projects are operated now by the pivate sector through a PPP system, a premiere

He developed as well international relations, mainly with French Regions and Municipalities like Region SUD Provence-Alpes-Côte D’Azur and Compiègne and joined many international networks like CGLU, MedCities and EuroMed. Khalil Harfouche is close the President of the Lebanese Republic General Michel Aoun who supports him in his development work in Jezzine Region. He is founder-member of many NGOs dealing with local development and environment. Khalil Harfouche holds a master’s degree in business computer (graduated in 1999 from Saint Joseph University in Beirut). He is the CEO of CODE Technologies, a company offering e.Government solutions and Microsoft services and covering the Middle East and Africa.