Annual Report 2015
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Annual Report 2015 In the support of peoples’ sovereignty over food and natural resources, we carry out our work Annual Report 2015 Table of Contents About Arab Group for the Protection of Nature ..........................................................2 Board Members ............................................................................................................3 APN Staff .....................................................................................................................3 Volunteer Team ............................................................................................................4 Founding Members of APN ........................................................................................5 Memberships and Partnerships ...................................................................................6 Executive Summary: APN’s Most Important Achievements in 2015 .......................7 Arab Network for Food Sovereignty .........................................................................9 APN President Razan Zuayter’s Speech at the Annual Dinner ................................11 Annual Dinner ..........................................................................................................12 Programmes: • Agricultural and Environmental Development ....................................................15 o Million Tree Campaign (MTC) ...................................................................16 o Green Caravan .............................................................................................32 • Influencing Agricultural and Environmental Policies: Food Sovereignty ...........42 o At the International Level ...........................................................................43 o At the Regional Level .................................................................................51 o At the Local Level ......................................................................................55 • Awareness and Mobilisation ................................................................................57 APN in the Media ....................................................................................................62 APN in the Eyes of the People ................................................................................66 Declarations and Statements ...................................................................................69 Sponsors List .......................................................................................................110 1 About Arab Group for the Protection of Nature Arab Group for the Protection of Nature was established in 2003 as a member-based non-profit or- ganisation to contribute to the protection of the environment and natural resources in Arab coun- tries, in coordination with both Arab and international organisations, against all hazards, including the destructive impacts of wars and foreign occupations. APN’s Mission Arab Group for the Protection of Nature seeks to reinforce the capacity of the Arab people to sustain their natural resources and gain sovereignty over them especially in areas under occupation and conflict, and to mobilise efforts of civil society organisations towards promoting and advocating regional and global environmental issues. Objectives of APN 1. Contribute to the rehabilitation and sustainability of natural resources in the Arab region which suffer from wars and armed conflicts, especially in Jordan and Palestine. 2. Influence the drafting and implementation of related global environmental policies, and enhance the role of civil society organisations through effective partnerships. 3. Mobilise efforts of civil society in order to contribute and respond to the needs of Arab and glob- al environment issues. 4. Build the capacity of the Arab Group for the Protection of Nature in order to achieve its mission with high professionalism, effectiveness and institutional sustainability. Annual General Assembly Meeting On Monday 17th August, 2015, APN held its Annual General Assembly meeting for the year 2014, which was attended by 15 members of the General Assembly as well as the Board of Directors, team of staff, and APN’s financial auditor from Talal Abu-Ghazaleh. The meeting began with a brief review of APN achievements and administrative report for the year 2014. This was followed by a discussion of the budget and auditor’s report for the fiscal year ending 31st December, 2014. A representative of Talal Abu-Ghazaleh reviewed the chartered accountant’s report and the details of the financial statements for 2014, and answered all inquiries and provided clarifications in cooperation with the APN accountant. APN General Assembly unanimously ap- proved the balance sheet, final accounts and the auditor’s report on the financial statement. 2 Board Members & APN Staff Board members Rami Barhoush Razan Zuayter Ziad Moughrabi Vice President of the Board President of the Board Secretary Zina Mushahwar Humam Mufti Suzan Ayoub Treasurer Board Member Board Member APN team Mariam Al Jaajaa Mohammad Qtaishat Heather Elaydi General Manager Projects Manager Advocacy Officer Farah Kaddoura Wala’a Dabash Malik Jariri Sameh Hijab Public Relations Manager Administrative Assistant Accountant Logistics 3 Volunteer Team Volunteer team APN is characterised by the participation of a huge volunteer community. More than 1000 volunteers from both genders and different age groups have contributed to various APN programmes. Financial Auditors Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Group 4 Founding Members of APN APN Founding Members Razan Zuayter Asem Shehabi George Mushahwar Humam Darwaza (deceased) Humam Mufti Eman Abu Alrous Inas Baseisou Hassan Al Jaajaa Lubna Irsheid Mutaz Al Afifi Nicola Billeh Rami Barhoush Sameeh Kawar Sami Nablusi Sari Zuaiter Subhia Al Maani Zina Kawar Dina Abu Alrous Fouad Srouji Sima Alami 5 Memberships and Partnerships APN is Member of the Following Networks and Institutions Arab Network for Food Sovereignty (ANFS) People’s Coalition on Food Sovereignty (PCFS) Civil Society Mechanism (CSM) International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Global Forum for Agricultural Research (GFAR) Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) International Network of Jerusalem Institutions Jordan Federation for Environmental NGOs APN Collaborates with the Following Regional and International institutions Committee on World Food Security (CFS) United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) Qatar Charity Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Qatari Red Crescent APN Partners in Tree Planting and Land Rehabilitation Programmes Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC) Palestinian Farmers Union (PFU) Palestinian Voluntary Work Committee Greater Amman Municipality Jordanian Ministry of Agriculture – Forestry Department Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) Land Research Centre (LRC) Welfare Association Ahali Center for Community Development Elhawakeer Association Handala Cultural Center Al-Nahda Rural Society Jordanian Engineers Association Al Hakura Society 6 Executive Summary APN’s Most Important Achievements of 2015 APN continued its activities for the year 2015, including agricultural projects in both Palestine and Jordan, awareness campaigns, and efforts to impact agricultural and environmental policy on the international, regional and local levels. This annual report highlights APN’s accomplishments throughout 2015. Below are some of the most prominent achievements: • APN continued planting its Third Million Tree Campaign in Palestine in 2015, having reached its previous goal of planting two million trees in 2014. The total number of fruit trees that had been planted by end of 2015 was 2,071,442, distributed on 112,320 dunums of land. The trees continue to meet the needs of 24,261 farmers, supporting a total of 184 056 people. In 2015 alone, APN planted 71,442 fruit trees covering 3,084 dunums of land to aid 910 farmers and support 8,667 people. APN was responsible for the building of nine water collection systems and installed irrigation networks with a length of 4,550 meters. Additionally, APN rehabilitated 59 greenhouses in the Gaza Strip, and provided fishermen with 156 fishing nets. Furthermore 242,000 vegetables seedlings were planted across Palestine, and 120 dunums of land were fully rehabilitated. • APN also continued its work within the Green Caravan Programme in order to enhance food secu- rity and food sovereignty in Jordan. The programme promotes reforestation efforts and works to combat desertification, particularly in underprivileged areas, and raises awareness among students on the importance of agriculture and trees. Work included the planting of thousands of olive, carob and other fruit trees in Dhlail, Aira, Salt, Albayouda, Jerash , Ajloun, and the Jordan Valley to expand the green space in Jordan and enhance food security of the population. Activities this year were made possible through several institutional partnerships. • APN organised a specialised workshop with the participation of volunteers, experts, farmers and journalists to develop a long term strategy for the Green Caravan, with the aim of achieving sustain- able development through the creation of agricultural projects. APN has also continued its awareness campaign “If You Only Know” by giving lectures at a number of schools and centers in Jordan. • As for