Under USAID's Municipal Governance Assistance Program, a two-day technical training workshop was organized in Tripoli in January for employees of municipal unions and large municipalities.

Organized as part of efforts to ensure sustainability of program efforts through activities for supporting institutions such as unions, the workshop held January 18-19, 2007 was attended by forty-one employees from the Jbeil and Fayhaa’ Unions and the Tripoli and Mina Municipalities.

Experts from SUNY/CLD provided detailed overviews of the standardized procedures and specialized systems designed to enhance the administrative and financial capacities of unions in the management of human resources, and in budgeting and accounting. Customized to address the specific financial and reporting requirements of unions, the systems include the Union Payroll and Personnel System (UPPS) and the Union Financial System (UFS) for unions subject to the General Accounting Law. A comprehensive system for unions to utilize in budget preparation as well as accounting, the UFS will enable officials and employees to efficiently manage the financial work of the unions and will provide information essential for reporting and planning.