A 10 million euros grant to support the development of ecologically responsible and economically accessible agricultural solutions in Jordan

The French Development Agency (AFD) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) signed a 10 million euros grant agreement in Amman with the objective to support the development of ecologically responsible and economically accessible agricultural solutions and techniques in the highlands of Jordan in the Mafraq governorate and in the North of the Jordan Valley.

This project, to which the consortium led by IUCN will finance an additional 618,000 euros, responds to the double challenge of the economic inclusion of vulnerable population, when 16% of Jordanians and 78% of Syrian refugees live below the poverty line and the severe lack of water resources in a country where agriculture contributes 4% of GDP, 15% of employment and 75% of national water consumption.

Thus, the project plans to improve the functioning of existing farms through the use of modern techniques in order to make them more productive and water-use efficient, to improve the working conditions of farmers and workers (decent work, income diversification), to contribute to the socio-economic empowerment of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians in the agricultural sector, and thus strengthen community resilience by stimulating local economic growth.

It will be implemented within the framework of a consortium of organizations bringing together around IUCN the Inter-Islamic Network on Water Resources Development and Management (INWRDAM), specialized in the efficient use of water and the reduction of disaster risk, Greentech, a company specializing in energy efficiency, Blumont International, an NGO that works for the benefit of refugees and host populations, and Horizons for Green Development, a Jordanian NGO whose mission is to support the sustainable development of communities. The National Agricultural Research Center (NARC) will be closely associated to the project thanks to the setup of a business support incubator, which will serve as an organizational framework for all partners and beneficiaries.

“With this ecologically responsible development pilot project, the French Development Agency contributes to the strengthening of the economic and social resilience of the Jordanian and Syrian refugee populations in the north of the country. Its setup with IUCN partners, which includes the public authorities from the start, thus provides the best operational guarantees of sustainability of the activities to the long term for the benefit of the most vulnerable populations. These are two of AFD’s strategic priorities in Jordan”, commented Luc Le Cabellec, AFD director for Jordan and Iraq.

This project is part of the Minka Middle East Initiative, through which AFD has contributed since 2017 to reducing Iraq’s fragilities and supporting its reconstruction.

Original source: AFD