Feed Subsidy Program and Drought Mitigation Activities Improve Circumstances in West Bank & Gaza

With 27 percent arable land and no permanent crops, the West Bank and Gaza suffer from periodic food insecurity. Using proceeds derived from the monetization of commodity donated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, ACDI/VOCA funds drought relief and agricultural training activities for Palestinian farmers and pastoralists.

The ACDI/VOCA program in the West Bank and Gaza works with agricultural communities to mitigate the devastating effects of recent drought and reduce the risk of future drought loss. Under a USDA 416(b) program, ACDI/VOCA monetized 47,500 metric tons (MT) of U.S. wheat in the Israeli and Palestinian markets throughout 2001. Proceeds from these sales have been used to fund a variety of development activities.

To date, the project has experienced significant success. The Palestinian Ministry of Agriculture (MOA), in collaboration with ACDI/VOCA, completed the emergency coupon subsidy and feed distribution component in January 2002. From November to January, the ministry distributed a total of 13,453 out of 13,582 subsidy coupons, supporting 912,000 sheep and goats in 12 districts. ACDI/VOCA reimbursed feed/fodder suppliers for 13,303 coupons totaling approximately $1.2 million. Coupons were redeemed for a total of 1,010 tons of fodder and 5,726 tons of barley. The feed subsidy program also served to strengthen cooperation between the extension service and MOA district offices, and provided economic stimulus to the livestock sector.

ACDI/VOCA is also working with at-risk agricultural communities to improve local community preparedness and response capability to drought events through the build up of water catchment and collection structures, improved community awareness and water conservation education. Through partnership with the Palestinian Agriculture Relief Committee (PARC) and the Palestinian Hydrology Group (PHG), nearly 100 agricultural cisterns in the West Bank have been constructed, benefiting over 1,200 farmers and their families. The construction of 71 domestic cisterns has benefited over 700 rural inhabitants. Additionally, PARC installed 27 irrigation water networks for house gardens, benefiting 189 persons, and reclaimed 71.3 hectares of rocky land (out of which 61.3 hectares were leveled, cleaned and plowed). On the 71.3 hectares, PARC constructed 28,091 square meters of stone retaining terraces and 36 cisterns as well as planted 11,140 seedlings in the West Bank benefiting 490 rural farmers and their families. PHG also constructed 3,050 meters of irrigation canal networks benefiting 385 farmers and their families and creating 868 new jobs.

To build capacity among rural inhabitants to better manage scarce water resources, PARC held 9 training workshops exclusively for women, along with 16 training workshops for students on water awareness and conservation, benefiting 1,098 participants. PHG held 60 workshops and conducted 49 home visits for 500 women, visited 27 schools to conduct awareness campaigns for 450 male and 455 female students and held 20 workshops benefiting 130 men. These training workshops complement the building of water catchment structures in many of the localities where rainwater harvesting is carried out and an important source of water for irrigation.

In Gaza, ACDI/VOCA worked with World Vision to complete the construction of 36 agricultural ponds (rainwater collection ponds) benefiting 36 farmers and 252 family members. Well-site engineers also rehabilitated ten wells serving 7 farmers each, benefiting 70 farmers and 490 other indirect beneficiaries. Additionally, 53 training workshops were conducted, covering four topics: strategies for reducing water consumption, maintenance of irrigation networks, water efficient irrigation systems and crop diversification. Over 1,657 rural inhabitants participated and directly benefited from the training workshops, and 643 jobs were created.

Extension visits to 3,552 farmers were conducted to affect positive changes in farming patterns in Gaza. The extension activities sought to improve utilization of available water resources, while helping to integrate modern farming techniques into the farming process by including strategies for reducing water usage, maintenance of irrigation systems and water-efficient irrigation systems. The extension services also sought to reduce farming costs related to irrigation and diversify the types of crops produced in Gaza.