An international report: 75% of the displaced farming families did not return to their homes

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[size=52]An international report: 75% of the displaced farming families did not return to their homes[/size]

[size=45]Translated by: Hamed Ahmed[/size]
[size=45]The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have issued a new study investigating the obstacles facing displaced farming families in Iraq from returning to their lands and resuming their activities after they were forced to leave their homes during the war against the terrorist ISIS in 2014.[/size]
[size=45]Confirming that six years after the declaration of the defeat of the terrorist organization, one farming family out of every four families has returned to their original areas, which means that 75% of those families have not returned to their homes until the present time.[/size]
[size=45]The study focused on seven provinces, which are Anbar, Babil, Baghdad, Diyala, Kirkuk, Nineveh and Salah al-Din, which constitute almost two-thirds of the country's agricultural regions and the highest proportion of wheat production. .[/size]
[size=45]The results of the research showed a slow rate of return of agricultural families to their areas of origin, as one agricultural family out of every four families returned to their areas, as well as the low contribution of agriculture to raising the financial income of the family, as the great destruction of agricultural equipment and the difficulty of obtaining financing and production equipment impede the return of families And the return of proper farming as a source of livelihood. The study states that this decline in returns indicates financial obstacles and ease of access to land ownership, as well as security concerns, which are major factors distinguishing between the displaced agricultural families who returned and those who did not return.[/size]
[size=45]As for the families who returned, there are other factors affecting their decision whether they will engage in agricultural activity again or not. These are the ease of access to their agricultural land and the availability of cash. As for the families who decided to engage in agriculture, there are important factors that they face and affect their activity, represented by the availability of irrigation water. on the farm and the age of the head of the family as to whether he can practice the profession. As for the young farmers, they do not seem so enthusiastic to focus on agriculture, due to their lack of experience and lack of interest in farming.[/size]
[size=45]The study showed that restoring security stability and rebuilding and rehabilitating agricultural requirements and related infrastructure are urgent requirements for farmers to resume their agricultural activity. The study recommends that the concerned authorities direct their care and attention to a number of difficulties and obstacles faced by agricultural families returning to their areas, which include giving high priority to public investments in the field of agriculture, improving conditions for obtaining loans and financial services, and improving living conditions in the rural environment for returning and displaced families.[/size]
[size=45]The study states that because of the destruction of the country's agricultural sector, Iraq has become more dependent on imported expensive agricultural and food products from global markets, and the consequent additional pressures on the country's budget.[/size]
[size=45]Agriculture is very important to the Iraqi economy, and while it constitutes 2 to 4% of the gross domestic product of the country’s economy, it is considered a large and important source of livelihood for the agricultural families and a source of job opportunities for them, as they constitute 30% of the country’s total population, and the agricultural sector is the third largest source of providing opportunities Work after the public sector and the industrial sector.[/size]
[size=45]The agricultural land area constitutes 16% of the total area of ​​Iraq, with 7 million hectares classified as arable land, and 5.9 million hectares of it are used for crop production.[/size]
[size=45]And that 65% of these lands depend on irrigation and the rest on rain, and most of them are located in the central and southern regions, relying on the water sources of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.[/size]
[size=45]The agricultural sector is the largest consumer of water in the country, and according to a study conducted by the World Bank in 2012 in cooperation with the FAO for Food and Agriculture, the percentage of agricultural water consumption constitutes 85% of the total water consumption in Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]Most of the crops dependent on irrigation in the country are wheat, barley, rice, dates, vegetables and fruits.[/size]
[size=45]On the other hand, the study indicated that Iraq is facing an acute shortage of water, and the situation is expected to worsen in the future due to climate change, poor irrigation methods, and an inefficient distribution system for water resources.[/size]
[size=45]And that 75% of the country's water resources come from beyond the borders and the lack of sufficient dams in the country to store water, and all the existing dams are old and need maintenance and maintenance, and most of them were built since the fifties and eighties of the last century.[/size]
[size=45]The study indicated that the damage inflicted by ISIS on the agricultural sector in the governorates directly affected by this was great and devastating, causing the displacement of many agricultural families, damage to water systems and irrigation facilities in them, and damage and destruction to agricultural lands, machinery and crops. 40%.[/size]
[size=45]The report concludes that investment in the agricultural sector would create more stable sources of income for rural farming families and encourage them to stay on their lands and return to them instead of thinking of migrating to the city to search for another source of livelihood.[/size]
[size=45]For: International Organization (FAO).[/size]
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