Agriculture Revitalization

Greenhouses

The Task Force recently facilitated the building, shipment and delivery of over 300 greenhouses to Karbala. The greenhouses were built at the State Company for Mechanical Industries (SCMI), a restarted factory in Iskandiriyah and delivered to Karbala in February.  The Government of Iraq sells the greenhouses to farmers to encourage agricultural self-sufficiency and improve farming techniques.  This is a joint Iraqi industrial-agricultural partnership that not only creates jobs in the Iraqi industrial region of Iskandiriyah, but also empowers Iraqi farmers in Karbala.  In the coming months, approximately 200 additional greenhouses will be delivered to the city of al Kut, with additional shipments to be delivered throughout the country in 2009.

 Agriculture Industrial Development

In partnership with the industrial revitalization initiative, the Task Force has helped restart or restore production to at least one or more lines to the following agricultural-focused factories:

• State Company for Agricultural Supplies—Suwara
• State Company for Dairy Products—Abu Ghraib
• Baiji Fertilizer
• Greenhouse production—SCMI—Iskandiriyah
• Ninewah Dairy
• Mesopotamia State Company for Seeds (MSCS)—Mesopotamia
• Tikrit Flour Mill
• Zuhairat Date Processing Cooperative—Abu Sayda

 Task Force Agricultural Team

Beginning in 2008, the Task Force embedded U.S. Land Grant University professors with Iraqi farmers. This relationship enables Iraq’s farmers to work side-by-side with world-renowned professors to increase production levels, learn new farming techniques, and promote self-sufficiency.

Once the breadbasket of the Middle East, Iraq farming methods were antiquated and underutilized during Saddam Hussein’s regime.  As part of the Task Force’s agriculture initiative, Iraq is now gaining the tools it needs to resume that role.

To date, over 30 faculty and staff from Colorado State University, Louisiana State University, Mississippi State University, Ohio State University, Oklahoma State University, and Texas A&M University have worked in the field on farms in MND-B, MND-C, MNF-W and MND-N (the areas surrounding Baghdad and in Central, Western and Northern Iraq).

The Task Force agriculture team works directly with Iraqis and collaborates with U.S. Military civil affairs units, provincial reconstruction teams (PRTs) and the Iraqi government.  This cooperation helps with the recovery and development of Iraq’s agriculture sector, as well as to strengthen it for the future.

The Task Force agriculture team initially conducted eight provincial agricultural assessments to reflect the collective voice of agriculture in each of the provinces.  Team members worked directly and in participation with sheikhs, Bedouin shepherds, governors and subsistence farmers.  The Task Force and the Iraqis have an open dialogue to share ideas, provide recommendations, and collaborate.

The agriculture teams offered immediate support and provided problem solving for:

• Animal diseases
• Insect pests
• Feed rations
• Tillage practices
• Crop variety assessment
• Irrigation and drainage practices

The team also suggested ideas to agribusiness and policy makers on current problems and opportunities for innovation in the Iraqi agriculture sector. 

The Task Force agriculture team recently completed the first special analysis for the military in and around Baghdad.  Specific topics studied included:

• Poultry production
• Seed storage
• Agricultural input subsidies
• Improved wheat planting
• Rebuilding the oilseed value chain
• Tourism development

The Task Force team currently has two groups currently working in Western and Northern Iraq, working to:

• Advise divisional command and local leadership on agriculture development issues

• Provide short courses on various aspects of agriculture production and rural development to Iraqi communities and PRTs
• Make recommendations on appropriate technology to implement development projects such as irrigation systems, horticultural practices, cropping systems and livestock health
• Interface with local agricultural institutions and leadership to provide communications on technical agronomic and natural resource issues facing provinces
• Provide military units with advise and plans on appropriate interventions for their respective communities to guarantee impact and sustainability of resource allocation

The Task Force agricultural team has implemented the following projects:

• Agriculture Youth Development Club
• Central Euphrates Farmers Market
• University curricula:  the Joint Extension-Research Program at Babylon University

The Task Force agricultural team has assessed the following agriculture efforts:

• Drip irrigation
• Fish farming

Agriculture Youth Development Club

Over 50% of the current Iraqi population is under the age of 18.  In rural areas, youth serve as a major source of labor and other than a paternal education (from father to son) and a few vocational high schools, youth have no traditional forms of agriculture education or technology transfer.

Working with provincial and tribal leadership, Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs), the Task Force agriculture team formed seven “4-H styled” clubs with 300 youth in North Babil.  The first project was a poultry entrepreneurship project and was successfully created and implemented with a budget under $25,000. 

The Program:

• Engaged youth in agriculture projects and taught new farming methods that have been developed by farmers, researches and educators.  This empowered and educated the next generation of Iraqi farmers and encourages technology development in the agriculture sector.
• Created a “micro government” where Iraqi youth elected a council, created by-laws, voted and practiced the basic ideals of democracy.
• Provided infrastructure which encouraged the Ministry of Agriculture, university officials and city and provincial governments to provide more youth services.
• Trained future Iraqi businessmen and women the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and business management.

Central Euphrates Farmers Market and AG Center (CEFM)

The northern portion of Babil Province, located between the historic Euphrates and Tigris Rivers, has a rich agricultural past and tremendous agricultural potential.  Much of the area’s once fertile farmland now lays idle due to a lack of water, poor drainage, salinity and inadequate fertilizing.  The area also lacks a wholesale market where farmers can sell their produce in bulk to buyers from urban markets. 

In mid-2007, leaders of Iraqi Agriculture Associations met with Coalition Forces and ePRTs and collectively developed plans for the Central Euphrates Farmers Market & AG Center, a permanent market complex and Agriculture Center for research and educational programs.  The site selected for the market was in the corridor that connects Basra, in Southern Iraq with Baghdad and Mosul, in Northern Iraq.  This corridor is projected to become one of Iraq’s most significant areas of growth for years to come. 

Following the initial planning meetings for the CEFM, the Task Force Agriculture team was asked to support the development of a business plan and management structure to establish the management roles, responsibilities and standard operating procedures for the CEFM.

The construction of the CEFM was completed in March 2009 and the market will be open for business in May 2009.  The CEFM is owned, operated and maintained by the four Iraqi Agriculture Associations who envisioned the project.

This collaboration is a prime example of Government officials, association leaders, Coalition Forces, and ePRTs coming together to address a vital need of the community. 

University Curricula

Iraq has an 80% literacy rate and an educated professional base.  However, university faculty in Iraq have long been disconnected from each other and international colleagues.  Course material and curriculum currently used is outdated and in need of assistance.  Iraq university faculty need help with professional development and the latest materials and techniques in order to prepare their students for regional and global competition in agriculture and agribusiness management.

The Task Force agriculture team initially delivered textbooks and in-service curricula to the Agriculture College in Karbala.  In addition, they:

• Signed a Letter of Intent with the Office of the Governor of Karbala to develop and collaborate on educational activities.

• Drafted pre-proposals for future project proposals to impact Iraq’s broad agricultural sector for the Governor’s Office, Najaf Extension, Kufa University College of Agriculture, Kufa Technical Institute, Najaf Agricultural Associations and private sector business agents.

• Developed strategy to move the Iraq economy toward greater responsiveness to protect prices and away from dependency on subsidized inputs.

Currently, the Task Force Agriculture team is focused on:

• Encouraging the creation of an Iraqi-American Agricultural Council to cooperate and collaborate amongst constituency groups.

• Supporting a strategy to engage agricultural associations as a market-centered enterprise.

• Expanding similar programs in Southern Iraq.