FAO and the European Union Bring Back Joy and Happiness to Nineveh Women's Groups Amid the Holy Month of Ramadan and Easter Festivities

The equipment for milk collection and processing was made available to 4000 rural producers, thanks to a funding from the European Union and close collaboration of FAO with the Ministry of Agriculture within the project “Support to agriculture livelihoods of rural and peri-urban returnees and communities in Nineveh Governorate, Iraq”. This project is an integral part of a holistic strategy aimed at developing dairy, feed and fodder value chain initiated earlier by FAO in the country, which has achieved tangible results to date.

During the distribution ceremony, FAO Representative in Iraq Dr. Salah ElHajj Hassan stated that the organization has already supported Women Groups and farmers with different equipment for collecting and processing milk, in total targeting 4,000 households, as well as the rehabilitation of 35 milk collection centers to support rural women. He added that this work has resulted in increasing the productivity and quality of dairy products, enabling their marketability, which has become well known with consumers over a comparatively short period. To further complement the production cycle, FAO is distributing additional equipment for the benefit of 750 women each representing a household and 150 Women Groups. The FAO Representative concluded by expressing his thanks and appreciation for the exceptional efforts and daily follow-up made by the project team, the extension staff of the Nineveh Agriculture Directorate, the Ministry of Agriculture and to the European Union for their continuous support.

In turn, the Head of Nineveh Agriculture Directorate Dr. Rabie Yousef Soran, praised the joint cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture and FAO and emphasized the pioneering efforts made by FAO in cooperation with the Nineveh Agriculture Directorate, and concluded that the remarkable achievements covered a large segment of  farmers in Nineveh Governorate, especially displaced farmers and returnees.

The FAO Livestock Expert Dr. Chedly Kayouli said that the beneficiaries of today’s ceremony have been trained beforehand, the practical training on milk collection and processing was essential while providing a platform for experience and knowledge sharing among farmers. In addition to building their individual capacities, participants also learned on working in teams within their Women Groups. The above coupled with exchange of skills and knowledge resulted in producing new types of domestic cheese for the first time in Nineveh and Iraq. These new varieties of cheese along with other dairy products benefited from improved technological process have been introduced to local markets stretching even beyond Nineveh governorate due to the quality that can compete with imported analogies. He added that during the blessed month of Ramadan and the Easter holidays, FAO today continues to spread joy and happiness to Women Groups in Nineveh by providing marketing equipment to facilitate their production, as well as improving opportunities for marketing their products and ultimately their livelihood conditions.

At the end of the ceremony, one of the project beneficiaries, Ms. Huda Khaled, spoke on behalf of all beneficiaries and pointed out the great role of FAO in improving livelihoods in Nineveh Governorate, and thus thanking both FAO and the European Union.