Minister of Agriculture before the People's Assembly: We will continue to support farmers and provide production requirements

Damascus-SANA

Today, the People's Assembly held its twelfth session of the third regular session of the second legislative session, headed by Hammouda Sabbagh, Speaker of the Assembly.

During the session, the Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Eng. Mohamed Hassan Qatna, answered the council members’ questions and their written memoranda submitted at yesterday’s session, indicating that the Grain Conference, which was held last May, suggested that the crime rate in wheat should not exceed 10 percent, while the ministry proposed raising the percentage to 23 percent in order to encourage Peasants hand over their crops.

Qatana confirmed that wheat was given priority with subsidies, as farmers received 61 million liters of diesel, at a rate of 70 percent of the needs, and seed at 400 pounds, knowing that its cost is 700 pounds, and fertilizers were delivered to them, but at the minimum need according to capabilities.

With regard to the pricing of all agricultural crops, including wheat, he stated that there is a committee in the ministry represented by its stakeholders, the Chambers of Agriculture, the General Union of Farmers, the Agricultural Bank, the Ministries of Internal Trade, Industry and Finance, and the Syndicate of Agricultural Engineers. With their consent, and this is what happened with regard to wheat and fertilizers.

Minister Qatana pointed out that the Council of Ministers formed a committee from the Consultative Council that included the Central Bureau of Statistics and universities, which conducted a field survey and a poll for the opinion of farmers directly, and concluded that the costs of producing a kilo of wheat are 675 Syrian pounds, indicating that there is no truth to what is rumored about the failure of the year of wheat and the cultivated areas increased this year. about last year.

Qatana indicated that the high costs of grain production are due to the high prices of fertilizers, fuels, seeds, pesticides and other requirements due to their high prices globally and the high cost of importing them, and this left its effects on the agricultural sector. Nevertheless, the government worked to preserve the profit margin for the farmer to continue the agricultural process.

The Minister of Agriculture indicated that work is being done to establish a contractual system between farmers and food industries factories affiliated with the Ministry of Industry and to allow the Farmers' Union to import used tractors, fertilizers and fodder.

Qatana explained that at the beginning of the current season, the ministry analyzed three samples of wheat seeds in Raqqa, Homs and al-Ghab to find out the percentage of crimes. The results of the analyzes and laboratory reports proved that the seeds conformed to the specifications, contrary to what is rumored about delivering wheat to farmers mixed with barley.

Minister Qatana indicated that it is not possible to grant a cash allowance to farmers for the rationed fodder because it is not possible to secure the full need of livestock from feed, pointing out that the ministry proposed to the government to finance the feed trading fund with 100 billion pounds and allow farmers to be given loans from the fund to buy feed from the markets, whether For poultry, sheep and cows, while continuing to distribute the prescribed feed within the feed cycles.

The Minister of Agriculture indicated that there is no possibility at present to restore and equip the extension units destroyed as a result of terrorism and to supply them with mechanisms and equipment, but they are currently organized and addressing and settling the conditions of the violating drilled wells and licensing them in cooperation with the Ministry of Water Resources and obligating them to modern irrigation and work continues to reclaim land despite the great destruction that has befallen the mechanisms, as there are 149 heavy machinery (bulldozer) destroyed.

Following the response of the Minister of Agriculture to the interventions of the council members, a number of members renewed their demand to raise the price of a kilo of wheat to compensate the farmers for the high production costs and to ensure their continuity in agriculture and to take care of the seed multiplication center in Izraa in the countryside of Daraa, providing it with the mechanisms and fuel necessary for its work, supporting poultry breeders and securing feed for poultry to prevent the rise in broiler prices and deciding With the objections submitted to the compensation granted to the people affected by the fires in the countryside of Lattakia and the provision of seedlings and watering hoses to them, they called for the formation of a committee to find out the reality of livestock, provide the necessary support and meet the needs of their breeders.

The session, which was attended by the Minister of State for People's Assembly Affairs, Eng. Maloul Al-Hussein, was adjourned until 11:00 a.m. tomorrow, Thursday.

 Waseem Al-Adawi