An important and distinctive cultural event happened in Aley city with the opening of the Development Office in the Cultural Center of Aley Municipality. The opening was held in the presence of a number of important figures, most notably the representative of Sheikh Akl of the Druze Unitarian sect, represented by the official of the Culture Committee at the Druze Community House, Sheikh Imad Faraj, the representative of the city of Aley, His Excellency Mr. Akram Chehayeb, represented by Mrs. Salma Chehayeb, representatives of international donor organizations such as “World Vision” and “50 /50”, in addition to representatives of parties, mayors, mukhtars, school principals, associations and clubs.
The ceremony began with the performance of the Lebanese national anthem and a welcome speech by media coordinator Najwa Maksad Jaber.
This was followed by a speech by Dr. Mona Akl, member of the Aley Municipal Council and the responsible director of the Cultural Center, where she gave a brief presentation on the Center’s activities and achievements in the cultural and development field, based on strong partnerships with supporting organizations, thanking the World Vision organization represented by Mr. Fares Samaha, which is considered an important partner to establish a development center.
The video presentations documented the center's work, which reflects a vision based on enhancing cultural and social cooperation in the region. She also explained about organizing a training course on project management and how to plan and write projects and present them to donor organizations. Dr. Mona presented this course with a high level of professionalism and interactivity, which made her admired by many participants and requested that the course be offered in several regions.
   After that, she thanked  everyone who supported her in her journey, specializing in thanks to the Aley Municipal Council and its president, Mr. Wajdi Mrad, and the Deputy of Aley city, His Excellency Mr. Akram Chehayeb, who believed in greatly strengthening the role of women.
Then, Ms. Diana Al-Hani, representative of the President of the Fifty-Fifty Organization, and media personality Joelle Abu Farhat, spoke about the efforts made by the organization to empower and enhance the role of women in society. She reviewed the importance of the project implemented by the organization in cooperation with the Civic Thought Forum for Development Association and the Municipality of Aley. She praised the prominent role played by Dr. Mona in making this project a success.
  For his part, the Mayor of Aley, Mr. Wajdi Murad, praised the efforts made and stressed the importance of cooperation between the municipality and donor organizations in order to enhance local development and enhance development activities. At the conclusion of the ceremony, he thanked the attendees for their great support for the city’s development initiatives, expressing his aspiration for more constructive cooperation and future successes.
In the end, the opening ribbon for the Development Office was cut in the presence of everyone, followed by a tour for attendees to learn about the office, its goals and future plans.