FAO/Mazen Haffar

Climate change is causing harmful consequence on agriculture in the Syrian Arab Republic, making farming production challenging for stallholder farmers who already suffer the accumulative impact of more than 12 years crisis, such as inputs soaring prices and their limited availability, water scarcity, destruction of infrastructure and other.

Framers do face unfamiliar weather conditions and reduction of rainfall rates, which eventually cause change of soil features and effect its fertility, which may impact the quality and quantity of crop’s production. FAO, in collaboration with UNHABITAT, UNDP and with the support of the Adaptation Fund, has contributed to addressing climate change in Syria by reaching 200 farmers in Eastern Ghouta, Rural Damascus, by introducing vermicompost fertilizer. This intervention, aims at strengthening small-scale farmers resilience to climate change, improve the crops’ productivity and sustain livelihoods and income.

An adaptation practice to climate change

The farmers can produce vermicompost locally due to the availability of its raw materials in the local market. It is mainly made using earthworms, crops and animal residues to become a nutrient-rich organic fertilizer for the soil. The vermicompost contain the main and micronutrients in a form that is relatively easy for plants and soil to absorb and enriches the soil with the microorganisms and improves it its water retention as it helps create a network of air pockets in which more moisture can be stored.

Eihab Al-Debiat, national project manager at FAO, has mentioned that FAO encourages smallholder farmers in Syria to use vermicompost as a climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technology for developing an eco-friendly fertilizer for the environment: “as climate change’s features is becoming obvious, it is important to aware small-scale farmers reduce the use of chemical fertilizers that may harm the soil making it poorer and drier in the long run,” states Eihab. 

“The farmers in Eastern Ghouta now realize the importance of vermicompost as a cost-effective fertilizer that can improve the crop’s quality and quantity without harming the soil,” he adds.

FAO and the Adaptation Fund collaboration

FAO is keen to help rural communities improve the agricultural practices to sustain production activities, as well as the livelihoods. Within the Adaptation Fund project, the Organization will enhance the adaptive capacities to strengthen the farmers resilience to climate change.