Closing borders due to COVID-19 revives Iraqi agriculture
Iraq's agriculture sector has been revived in the past few months, after the government closed its borders and banned the import of agricultural produce as a preventive measure against the coronavirus outbreak.
Closing the Iraqi borders due to preemptive measures against the coronavirus has helped revive Iraq's agriculture sector and expand the work of Iraqi farmers who have increased their production to supply the Iraqi market, which had been relying on imports for 17 years.
Production has been so great that Agriculture Minister Mohammad al-Khafaji announced July 13, “a demand to export tomatoes, eggplants and potatoes at a quantity of 500 tons per crop. Several countries want Iraqi agricultural products, including meat.”
On July 11, the Iraqi Ministry of Trade announced self-sufficiency from the wheat that Iraqi farms produce; Iraq had been a main importer of grains in the Middle East.
Wide stretches of Iraqi agricultural lands have faced desertification in the past few years, after the borders were opened to imported products. Most markets lacked any Iraqi agricultural products.
