The SRTF Launches Its Largest Intervention to Boost Food Security in the South of Syria

Jordan – Thursday, 26 January 2017 – The Management Committee (MC) of the Syria Recovery Trust Fund (SRTF) approved a new project to boost food security in the south of Syria today. With a total budget of EUR 6.1 million, the “Enhancing Food Security of Dar’a and Quneitra Governorates” project seeks to deal with the problem of wheat shortages resulting from procrastination of the Syrian conflict and persistence of the drought phenomenon.

As the largest SRTF intervention in the southern governorates, the project will import sufficient quantities of soft wheat to be mixed and milled with local hard wheat to produce the right flour mix needed for baking the traditional Syrian bread. It will also import and distribute hessian sacks, flour sacks, polyethylene sheets and high density polyethylene covers (tarpaulins) to protect wheat stocks. In addition, the project will secure power supplies to milling plants by procuring the needed quality fuel for their electricity generators.

While supporting local farmers and sector operators in the task of properly storing and protecting Syrian wheat, the project will ensure the availability of flour for local bakeries. Hence, it will guarantee the availability of bread and the stability of bread prices. The project is also expected to help generate additional employment opportunities in various sectors, such as transportation, storage, food production and catering services as well as other technical services. The wheat bran produced by the milling plants as a byproduct, will be sold to livestock feed producers to help improve the production of meat and eggs.

Over 215,000 people will benefit from the availability of bread at affordable prices while 15,000 farming families are expected to benefit from the project‘s hessian sacks component.

For more information on the SRTF visit:

http://www.srtfund.org

Media outlets may contact:
communications@srtfund.org