Illegal billboards to be removed

Ministry of Interior plans to begin from Nahr-El-Kalb reaching Saida’s coastal line

July 11, 2011- Head of the Outdoor Advertising Agencies Group, Roy Mteini, stated that it would be hard to fully implement a decree to regulate billboard advertisements across the country all at once. He said a vast number of billboards are installed in violation to the said decree, which sets a number of clear-cut constraints for these types of ads.

According to An-Nahar daily, Mteini said the owners of outdoor advert agencies have met with Minister of Interior and Municipalities, Marwan Charbel, over the matter. He said they discussed the minister’s plan to remove all illegal billboards across the country. Mteini quoted the Interior Minister as saying the plan is divided into two levels. The first part will deal with the northern coastal line reaching Tabarja, while the second will involve the area across the southern coastal line.

President of the Syndicate of Billboard Advertising Agencies’ Owners, Antonio Vincenti, said the Ministry of Interior has decided to put a halt on giving new permits for billboard ads until the regulatory decree is amended.
Vincenti said he has a reservation on the minister’s decision not to renew the existing advertisements’ permits. “This (decision) would put all agencies in the business in limbo,” he said.