On the 23rd July 2024, WATAN launched a forum for Akadia associations in northwestern Syria, as part of ‘The Journey Home’ project supported by the European Union. This forum was an exceptional opportunity for the heads of the associations and their executive teams to interact with agricultural experts, prominent farmers, and humanitarian organizations, to strengthen sustainable value chains for olives and vegetables.
Abdul Hamid Al-Kurj, the project coordinator, explains: “This forum reflects the importance of transforming challenges into real opportunities for olive farmers in northern Syria and providing what’s necessary according to these associations. In addition to this, the sustainable plans reflect the serious will to support agriculture in the region.”
He added: “The annual forum of the Akadia Association in northern Syria highlights the exceptional achievements and transforming challenges into real opportunities for olive farmers in the region. This forum comes as a vital platform that provides essential support to local communities, with sustainable plans aimed at achieving sustainable development and improving living conditions.” The forum also included inspiring success stories, such as the story of farmer Yasser Rahim who succeeded in achieving remarkable progress thanks to the strong support he received. This helped him achieve sustainable growth in his production. Yasser stated: “Thanks to the continuous guidance and support, I was able to improve the quality of my products and increase production significantly, which positively affected my life and the life of my family.”
The forum featured products from two associations, highlighting the natural food offerings of the Acadia Women’s Association. These included cheese, labneh, olives, tomato paste, pomegranate molasses, and natural juices as well as fresh vegetables like tomatoes, peppers, and watermelons – a testament to the success of hundreds of local farmers. Ms. Wahida Taleb, one of the farmers who benefited from the activities of the Akadia Women’s Association, said: “The association changed my life and the lives of many women in our region. Thanks to the training and support they provided; we were able to produce high-quality products and market them successfully.”
The heads of the Akadia Association for the Support of Vegetable and Olive Farmers gave a speech to talk about the most important achievements of the associations, the methods of their launch, the number of members of the associations, the assets used, and the methods of achieving sustainable success. They talked about the challenges they faced and how to overcome them through cooperation and joint efforts.
Regarding the qualitative success in the field of olives and excellence in analyzing the produced olive oil, the Director of the Olive Oil Laboratory at Idlib University, Mr. Walid Al-Fares, spoke about the achievement, saying: “We have made great progress in improving the quality of olive oil thanks to accurate research and analysis. This success is the result of hard work and close cooperation between the association and the farmers, and we hope that this progress will continue to achieve more successes in the future.”
Al-Fares added: “The analyses used in the laboratory are internationally recognized analyses by the International Olive Council, in addition to issuing a certificate from the laboratory that is documented and internationally recognized, allowing farmers and traders to see the quality of the oil produced and the materials it contains.” The two associations in northwestern Syria are working on sustainability to improve the agricultural life of farmers, working with more than 578 olive and vegetable farms in the areas of Killi and Kafr Arouq in the Idlib countryside.
This forum is an opportunity to introduce the two associations and their impact on the lives of farmers and allows farmers to discuss the challenges they face and how they were able to overcome them, and ways to combat expected challenges in the future.
Overall we see that the challenges facing the regions of northwestern Syria, despite their severity, carry within them opportunities for achieving success and progress thanks to the efforts made by local associations and international support. The Akadia Associations Forum is a model to be emulated in transforming difficulties into tangible achievements, as it was not just a passing event, but an exceptional platform for communication, exchange of experiences, and successful experiments. In the end, the most important question remains: If these challenges have generated this number of achievements, what can we achieve if we continue to work hand in hand? Hope lies in persistence, dedication to work, and the belief that tomorrow holds greater and better opportunities. Let us all be part of this change and work together to achieve a bright and sustainable future for our country.