Staff Spotlight

Municipal Policy Participation: Jebal Al Botom 

Ms. Faten Mhanna, a member of PU's staff since 2024, serves as an elected municipal council member in Jebal Al Botom - Southern Lebanon, where she has played an active role in local governance and poverty-focused policymaking. She contributed to the reopening of the Social Affairs Center, under the supervision of Lebanon's Ministry of Social Affairs, restoring vulnerable residents' access to essential social services. She also helped implement an assistance scheme, delivered in partnership with a local association, to install low-cost solar energy systems in homes, with the municipality covering the remaining cost to ease residents' utility expenses. 
Her contributions further extended to fiscal policy, including a reduction in the rental value tax, as well as a solar-powered water initiative and a job-creation effort designed to strengthen the community's economic resilience. She additionally took part in an NGO-led programme equipping women with income-generating skills to help sustain their families. 
Together, these efforts reflect Ms. Mhanna's sustained engagement in municipal governance and policy action to address poverty across its financial, social, and economic dimensions. 

Municipal Policy Participation: Sarafand

Mr. Moustafa Khalife, a member of PU's staff since 2021, serves as an elected municipal council member in Sarafand, southern Lebanon, where he has contributed actively to local governance and the local region's anti-poverty efforts. In coordination with Lebanon's Ministry of Social Affairs, he contributed to the operation of Sarafand's Development Services Center, helping maintain displaced persons' and low-income families' access to essential social services. He also played a role in establishing the municipality's ongoing free healthcare days, an initiative designed to expand access to essential medical care for vulnerable residents as part of the municipality's wider efforts to ease hardship. Furthermore, he supported the creation of employment opportunities for at-risk residents through a targeted municipal scheme, helping to strengthen the community's economic resilience.