The SRTF Announces Increase in Wheat Harvest Yield in Ar-Raqqa

Amman – Thursday, 6^th August 2020 - The SRTF announced that its efforts to restore the agriculture sector in Ar-Raqqa have resulted in around 20,000 tons of wheat this year. This impressive yield is a result of the SRTF’s ongoing intervention, “Agricultural Support to Farmers”, started in 2018 and now in its third and final phase. This year’s yield is over 3.4 tons of wheat per hectare, a 33% increase from last year’s yield.

As part of phase three, this intervention introduced new technical support to enable farmer cooperatives to further support their farmers. Since August 2019, the SRTF has delivered 28 tractors, 600 tons of wheat seeds, 600 tons of compound fertilizers, and eight harvesters. This phase has benefited 2,071 farmers, their families, and workers and cultivate over 7,100 hectares of land. These SRTF-supported inputs have helped farmers enable the cultivation and farming of lands, increase profits and savings, improve business and livelihoods, and access markets to sell their crops.

In an interview, many farmers attested to the great benefits that this harvest has provided because of the support from the SRTF through the delivery of seeds, fertilizer, hessian sacks, farming machinery, and technical training. The distribution of personal protection equipment (PPE) and hessian sacks has mitigated the need for farmers to adopt negative coping mechanisms such as borrowing money and purchasing low-quality goods. In a recent survey, beneficiaries stated that they were satisfied with the quality, timing, and organization of the SRTF-provided PPE and hessian sacks and this had a very positive impact on their lives.

Since 2013, according to the Office of Global Analysis (OGA) and the International Production Assessment Division (IPAD) – US Department of Agriculture (USDA), the average yield was about 1.9 tons per hectare, which indicates an increase of about 82 percent.

The SRTF Director General Eng. Hani Khabbaz shared his affirmative outlook on this intervention saying: “This year’s bountiful harvest is a direct result of hard work and determination of the Syrian farmers and cooperatives to revitalize the agriculture sector in Ar-Raqqa. The continuous increase in wheat production contributes to the livelihoods of the farmers and to food security in targeted communities. As we progress, the SRTF is determined to continue its support of restoring stability to the areas liberated from Daesh.”

For further information on the project, please see:

Agricultural Support to Farmers- Phase III

For more information on the SRTF visit:

http://www.srtfund.org

Media outlets may contact:
communications@srtfund.org