FAO/Mazen Haffar

Italy, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) are pleased to announce their impactful partnership that aims to assist vulnerable small-scale farmers to sustain their livelihoods and equitable access to natural resources. The partners have signed a one million Euro agreement, funded by Italy, to implement a project that aims at restoring access to water for farmers through strengthening the capacity of the targeted local communities in water hyacinth control and management in Al- Ghab, Hama Governorate.

Taking place in Damascus, the Syrian Arab Republic, on Monday 15 May 2023, the partners have ensured that this collaboration meets the major objective of improving the local community’s resilience, food security and livelihoods, through better management and restored access to water resources.

“Italy is pleased to partner with FAO and WFP in this intervention that, while responding to an actual problem, that is the uncontrolled spreading of the Nile flower, paves the way for the socio-economic recovery of the area. The contribution is, therefore, in line with the Area-based Approach and Early Recovery efforts that Italy is particularly supporting in Syria and in general to the promotion of Food Security at global level also in view of the Conference that will take place in Rome this coming July”, said Massimiliano D’Antuono, Chargé D’Affaires of the Italian Embassy in Damascus.

“The programme aims at preventing the spread of the water hyacinth that is hindering agricultural activities, one of the main economic resources in the Governorate. The approach that FAO and WFP intend to use will look at both the removal of the Nile flower and also and more importantly the capacity building of the local communities. This approach will support the people in the long term since they will also learn how to prevent further spread of the invasive species" added Alessandra Piermattei, Director of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) for Lebanon and Syria.

FAO Representative in the Syrian Arab Republic, Mike Robson, states that the programme is significant and beneficial to farmers in the immediate and in the long term: “With the generous contribution from Italy, FAO and WFP will collaborate towards increasing and sustaining the agricultural productivity in the targeted area, by restoring access to water for vulnerable farmers, as well as enhancing the resilience of the local community to manage their natural resources efficiently,”.

Water hyacinth is an invasive plant that if left uncontrolled, will block free water flows and prevent fish from otherwise thriving in the area. The project will assist more than 10 000 farming families by restoring access to water for irrigation, through the removal of the hyacinth pest from irrigation canals, light rehabilitation of irrigation and related infrastructure and capacity building for the targeted local communities, as well as the provision of livelihoods restoration activities to food insecure and vulnerable households.