LocationsEnhancing Food Security and Improving Livelihoods
Farming for Life in Deir ez-Zour
June 1, 2023
Abdallah happy to finally reap the benefits of his hard work
©UNDP Syria - Abdalmalek Alabdalaa
Abdallah is 32 years old, married with four children and lives in Deir ez-Zour. He owned one hectare of land (10 dunums) that he planted to support his family and put food on the table. “I stopped attending school to help my father and grandfather farm the land. I loved agriculture and raising animals, although we only had two goats,” said Abdallah. “The land is everything that we own and our only source of income,” he added.
During the war in Syria, Abdallah and his family were forcibly displaced from their home and their land to another area. They had no other income. They suffered from war and hunger. Despite the challenges, Abdallah moved back. He set up a tent on his land since he had no house to return to and lived there with his family for six months. He was already married by then, with a family of his own. His expenses were on the rise.
Abdallah’s family participating in the harvest
©UNDP Syria - Abdalmalek Alabdalaa
“I cultivated cotton from other people’s land and distributed seedlings until I heard from my neighbour about the project implemented by the United Nations Development Progamme in Syria. I registered to gain new skills and advice on how to plant, grow and harvest corn, make compost and air layering of plants,” highlighted Abdallah.
Abdallah was awarded a grant that enabled him to grow corn. He was producing about four tons of corn. His love and skills in agriculture prompted him to discover a cave in the village that contained many bats. In the morning, Abdullah would collect bat dung, steep it in water, and then water the land. It was like a superfood to the crops. It made them grow in abundance and were of excellent quality.
“I can now use the whole land area. Off corn season, I plant it with cotton. I managed to build two rooms in the house and repair what was destroyed by the war from the income I received from selling the crops. Corn is like a gold mine. I would not have discovered it if not for the advice and the support I received from the programme,” Abdallah said.
Abdullah and his family are happy to finally reap the benefits of their hard work. Around 150 farmers in Deir ez-Zour harvested approximately 600 tons of corn in 2022 as a result of the UNDP Value Chain Support Programme, financed through the Funding Window. The project is enhancing food security and improving livelihoods in targeted communities.
Abdallah and his son after loading the harvested crops in the truck and take them to the market
©UNDP Syria - Abdalmalek Alabdalaa
“I can now use the whole land area. Off corn season, I plant it with cotton. I managed to build two rooms in the house and repair what was destroyed by the war from the income I received from selling the crops. Corn is like a gold mine. I would not have discovered it if not for the advice and the support I received from the programme,” Abdallah Deir ez-Zour
