USAID supports farmers in North and East Syria with wheat seed shipment

GOZARTO/WASHINGTON, D.C. – The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced that it sent large quantities of wheat seeds to farmers in northeastern Syria in order to avoid a food crisis during the upcoming agricultural season. Agricultural production in northeastern Syria has recently been affected by insufficient rainfall, other natural factors, and the arbitrary damming of the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers by the Turkish government, leading to a decrease in the quantity and quality of bread. In response, USAID announced that it has sent 3,000 tons of wheat seed to farmers in northeastern Syria.

This American support aligns with previous announcements by officials in the agricultural and economic sectors in the Democratic Autonomous Administration (DAA) of North and East Syria, including co-chair of the Economic and Agriculture Authority Salman Barodo, who stated that the volume of the last growing season’s production was not sufficient to cover the population’s need for bread, seeds and livestock fodder. Barodo stated that the quantity of wheat seed in the Administration’s warehouses is not sufficient to meet the needs of all farmers. According to the USAID announcement, the seed shipment sent by the agency will cover seventy percent of farmers’ needs.

Good news–#USAID helping beleaguered farmers in #AANES #Syria. https://t.co/hZV1qUXdL6

— Law and Liberty (@lawandliberty1) November 13, 2021

At the beginning of this year, the administration set the price of wheat seeds at 1,200 Syrian pounds, but its market price has climbed to 1,700 Syrian pounds.

It is noteworthy that the Turkish occupation has deliberately sabotaged agricultural production in the DAA throughout previous harvest seasons in various ways, including arson, sending mercenaries to prevent farmers from working on their lands, and more recently by building dams to cut off vital water supplies from the region’s rivers.

An estimated 30%-35% of agricultural land in North and East Syria is still owned by Syriacs, whether living in the homeland or in the diaspora. Years of war, political and economic hardship, demographic pressure, and emigration have increasingly jeopardized their possessions and presence.