As per the Zoukis’ request, the municipality of Zouk Mikael was founded in 1912 in accordance with the law of the governorate of Mount Lebanon, which considers the municipality an elected local NGO “decentralized and independent financially”.

In 1864, the governor Daoud Pasha founded the first municipality in Lebanon at Deir Al Qamar in order to start the reform in Mount Lebanon following the great setback in 1860.

Zouk Mikael citizens were impressed by this experience, enough to raise a request, which was later approved, to the governor “Muzaffar Pasha” pleading to establish a “Commission” or municipal council in order to revive their city.

The successive municipal councils of Zouk Mikael left an important track regarding the mobility of the Zouki community in a cultural and infrastructural development.

In 1963, the young lawyer Nouhad Elias Naufal was elected president of the municipal council of Zouk Mikael. He worked hard on cultural and infrastructural developments, achieving a great deal of success that contributed to the rise of Zouk Mikael, which earned in 1999 the UNESCO prize “City for Peace in the Arab world “.

Nouhad Naufal took up challenges in a war-torn country. He built the municipal palace and created a safe and secure empire, at the same time that internal conflicts were brewing across the country causing thousands of deaths. This municipal palace served as a residence for the President of the Lebanese Republic, the late Sleiman Franjieh, in March 1976 following the bombing of the Baabda presidential palace, and later became the seat of the Federation of Keserwan – Ftouh Municipalities.

Despite the great political setbacks that took place during his first term, Nouhad Naufal worked hard on social, cultural and infrastructural developments without interfering with politics. He created the public garden, restored the Old Souk, built the municipal university dispensary, the Roman amphitheater, the house of the Artisan, the Youth and Culture Center (MJC), the stadium for sports and theater SNN … and other touristic and socio-cultural projects leading to place Zouk Mikael at the forefront of the Middle Eastern tourist map.

Nouhad Naufal was one of the greatest visionaries of his time. In 1977, President Elias Sarkis and Prime Minister Salim Al-Hoss signed Decree No. 722 on the founding of the Federation of Municipalities, Keserwan – Ftouh, which was led by Naufal until 2016. The Law on Municipalities, promulgated in 1977 by the Legislative Decree, was known as Nouhad Naufal’s law, who participated in the drafting of other municipal laws and regulations (municipal fees laws, distribution decree of Independent Municipal Fund, principles of accounting in municipalities, law of expropriations).

In addition to his role as an experienced lawyer in municipal affairs, Naufal distinguished himself as a researcher and lecturer on “administrative decentralization”. He was awarded high Lebanese distinctions, such as the National Order of Cedar, a senior officer, the Lebanese Order of Merit, and an honorary doctorate in sociology from the Holy Spirit University – Kaslik. In his second mandate, Zouk Mikael won the UNESCO Prize “City for Peace in the Arab World”, as well as the prize for the most beautiful city in the Arab States. At its first meeting, the municipal council led by his successor Elias El-Beaino, decided to appoint the lawyer Nouhad Naufal honorary president of the municipality, and then raised a statue honoring him in the outer courtyard of the municipal palace on the April 26th, 2019.

On May 16th, 2016, the list “Nabad el Zouk” led by Elias El-Beaino, won the municipal elections. From then on, the city council strived hard to preserve the well-being of the citizens.

In terms of infrastructure, a team of geologists assisted the municipality’s engineering department in drilling five artesian wells to meet the household and agricultural needs of citizens. On the other hand, the lighting system of the main streets was modernized, following the construction of new roads and various infrastructural restorations.

As for the culture, the municipal council inaugurated three museums: the museum of the poet Elias Abou Chabke, the museum of the lawyer Antoun Kazan, as well as the museum of Nawl, after they were named National Museums in April 2019. The municipal council intensified as well the artistic, social, linguistic and cultural activities within the Youth and Culture Center (MJC), by hosting as exhibitions, conferences, seminars, language, music and painting courses…

A pioneer in the administrative field, the municipal council led by El-Beaino adopted the E-Municipality to facilitate all kinds of transactions with absolute transparency.

In the sports sector, the Nouhad Naufal stadium, SNN, was rehabilitated in 2017 in accordance with the international standards required by FIBA, which allowed it to host the Asian Basketball Cup in 2017, as well as the qualifications for the World Cup of 2019.

Also, an acoustics treatment was organized in the covered stadium in 2018, to later transform it into the biggest Opera House in Lebanon, inaugurated on April 27th, 2019 during a concert celebrated by the NDU choir accompanied by the Lebanese Philharmonic Orchestra.

On the other hand, in order to strengthen social relations between Zoukis who rarely gather anymore to reminisce on the good old days, President El-Beaino dedicated the first Saturday of September as an annual date to celebrate the feast of Zouk Mikael in an atmosphere of fraternity and conviviality.