JIL AGHA, Syria (North Press) – Farmers working on agricultural projects to grow potatoes, French onions and some kinds of trees in the countryside of the town of Jil Agha (al-Jawadiya) in the countryside of Qamishli, northeastern Syria, aspire to achieve profits and provide local product and job opportunities.
These projects brought together experienced farmers displaced from Afrin region, a land investor from Qamishli, owners of agricultural lands and workers from Jil Agha countryside.
Overcoming difficulties
“We used to grow only wheat and barley in the Jazira region,” Muhammad Amoudi, an investor and financier of the project, said.
Amoudi and his friends started the project despite the difficulties they faced.
“One of the difficulties we faced was buying seeds in dollars,” he added.
“The seed is Dutch, we bring it across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which costs us a lot.”
The organizers of these projects also preferred to choose lands relatively far from the Turkish borders in order to avoid the security risks.
The Agriculture Committee in Jil Agha of the Autonomous Administration promised to provide them with the necessary quantities of diesel and searching for solutions to save production quantities in case they exceed the needs of the markets.
Amoudi pointed out that planting potatoes, French onions and fruit trees such as walnuts, almonds and pistachios are all new crops that are considered experimental.
Guaranteed production
Ala’ Mansour, a pseudonym for an IDP from Afrin, said that he now has no source of income except to benefit from his experience in agriculture.
He added that before starting work, he checked and analyzed the soil in the laboratory and sprayed quantities of organic fertilizers to improve it.
Mansour indicated that the results are almost guaranteed after experiments he carried out using two varieties of potato seed.
Job opportunities and investment
Ten workers are divided into groups to work chopping potatoes and collecting them in a warehouse as seeds.
Ruqaya Mahmoud, a Jil Agha resident and a breadwinner for her three children, receives 400 Syrian pounds (SYP) per one hour.
“We cut a large potato into small pieces according to the distribution of the buds,” she said.
Female workers in the project believe that it provides seasonal job opportunities for women and girls, whose circumstances do not help them to practice other professions and jobs.
Faisal Hussein, the land owner, believes that the area needs projects of this kind, especially after the absence of irrigated agriculture projects such as cotton and vegetables.
“Our agricultural projects stopped more than 12 years ago. We hope that this project will be successful,” he added.