Drought hits Syria, food security threat on horizon
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) warned that Syria's record drought this year is likely to lead to some 75% of the wheat crop failing and threaten the food security of as many as millions of citizens.
Syria's farming sector is under unprecedented crisis after disastrous drought this year threatened wheat cultivation, with an estimated 75% of crops to fail, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) issued a warning of the risk of food insecurity for tens of millions of Syrians.
FAO Syria Representative Tony Ettel told Reuters that the agency is projecting a shortage of 2.7 million tons of wheat, which is as much as is needed to feed around 16.3 million people for a year.
This dramatic decline in wheat production comes as the agricultural crisis chokes the farmers amid climate change, scant rains, and scarce means of irrigation. This crisis also prevails in North and East Syria due to the direct Turkish occupation and the depletion of river sources that pass through Syrian land. This has affected food security and the economic revenue of farmers and residents, causing their crops to be destroyed.
The fertile lands of Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Tabqa cantons are facing a humanitarian and environmental crisis due to the Turkish occupation's chokehold on the flow of the Euphrates River, which is the main lifeline.
The North and East Syria Energy Authority warned of the worsening water crisis in the Euphrates River, in a release issued after the water level in the Euphrates Dam lake rose to nearly 6 meters.
The effects of the three-year-old drought have worsened, threatening the country's integrated farming system and with serious implications for the farm industry and farmers, affecting the growth of crops, especially staple crops such as wheat and barley.
The year has seen many farmers leave their farms due to climatic conditions, poor rainfall, and Turkish policies that have resulted in water being retained in dams, increasing the economic and livelihood issues for those that rely on farming.
Farmers within the Deir ez-Zor and Raqqa canton have criticized Turkey's use of the Euphrates River as a tool of pressure. The current water flow has not exceeded 250 cubic meters per second, far below the 500 cubic meters established by the 1987 agreement.
The Ba'ath regime relied on imports of Russian wheat to balance shortfalls in local production, especially during previous droughts. But Moscow halted the export of wheat to Syria upon the fall of the regime. Meanwhile, the Democratic Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria is independent in the production of the region's wheat crop, the breadbasket of Syria. It continues to support this strategic crop by providing farmers with fuel to utilize in the operation of irrigation pumps and the finest seeds appropriate for the region that are resistant to climate change.
The Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria got nearly one million tons of wheat during the 2023-2024 season.
T/S
ANHA
