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Good practice Imported

Horsh Beirut — EU-Funded Revival of Beirut's Largest Green Space (ENABLE Programme)

Lebanon · Beirut · See the Lebanon profile · See the Beirut profile

Evidence: Descriptive / self-reported Top 96% 20/100 · Ask Evidence Copilot about this practice

Horsh Beirut, a 33-hectare pine forest that is 72% of Beirut's public green space and was largely closed to residents from 1992-2016, is being revived under the EU-funded ENABLE programme (2023-2026), rebuilding paths and facilities and giving ~200 disadvantaged youth paid work.

33 hectares
Park area
72%
Share of Beirut's public green space
1.7 km
Bicycle lane rebuilt
~200
Young people given paid work (phase 1) (2023-2025)
400+
Additional people planned for support
Horsh Beirut — EU-Funded Revival of Beirut's Largest Green Space (ENABLE Programme)

Details

Maturity
Pilot
Promoter
International Labour Organization, Lebanese Ministry of Social Affairs & Municipality of Beirut, with NGOs Nahnoo and arcenciel; EU-funded (ENABLE programme)
Period
2023–2026 (first phase inaugurated September 2025)
Keywords
urban green space, park restoration, employment, social inclusion

Context

Horsh Beirut, a roughly 33-hectare pine forest and about 72% of Beirut's total public green area, was closed to most residents from 1992 to 2016 and is the largest public green space in the Lebanese capital.

Activities

Since 2023, the EU-funded ENABLE programme (2023-2026), led by the International Labour Organization with Lebanon's Ministry of Social Affairs, the Municipality of Beirut, and NGOs Nahnoo and arcenciel, has used employment-intensive construction methods to rebuild a 1.7 km bicycle lane, upgrade the skatepark, and rehabilitate public restrooms.

Results

The first phase, inaugurated September 2025, gave roughly 200 young women and men previously outside the labour market paid work, with plans to extend support to over 400 more people currently receiving social assistance.

Conclusions

The park hosts a native Mediterranean pine-forest ecosystem with resident bird populations, but sources reviewed do not publish species counts, canopy-cover change, or stormwater/soil data, so ecological outcomes are scored conservatively relative to the well-documented social and employment results.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Medium (€50k–€500k) — Funded under the EU ENABLE programme (2023-2026); total budget not disclosed in sources reviewed.
Time to results
Medium (1–3 years) — Programme runs 2023-2026; first phase inaugurated September 2025, further phases planned.
Staffing & skills
International Labour Organization, Lebanese Ministry of Social Affairs, Municipality of Beirut, NGOs Nahnoo and arcenciel

Conditions for success

  • employment-intensive construction methods that combine infrastructure delivery with paid work for disadvantaged youth
  • EU funding (ENABLE programme) with a multi-year (2023-2026) horizon
  • local NGO partnership for community legitimacy

Where it fits

Governance type
UN agency plus national ministry and municipal government, EU-funded
Scale
single major urban park (Beirut)
Income level
lower-middle income (Lebanon)

Commonly funded by

National / regional programmes

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Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Attachments

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