🔗 Share this article

Outside the countryside by the city of Hama, wheat fields should be golden and abundant with crops.

Instead, Maher Haddad's fields remains barren, generating just a portion of its usual output.

"This year was devastating due to the lack of rain," explained the middle-aged cultivator.

His fields generated merely 190kg per dunum—well under the 400-500kg harvested in a average season.

"{We lost what we invested; we've suffered financially. There's no way to fund next season's crops," he continued.

Having two teenage daughters to support, the farmer is borrowing money from relatives to survive.

National Situation

The hardship is echoed across the nation, where the worst rain shortage in over three decades has slashed crop yields by a significant portion.

An estimated deficit of over two and a half million tonnes is expected this season—enough to feed the annual nutrition of millions of individuals.

Growing Need

Without more assistance or the means to purchase wheat, the condition may worsen significantly.

More than 14,000,000 residents—nearly six in ten the population—currently find it hard to meet their nutritional needs.

Out of these, over nine million experience severe food shortage, including over a million in dire states.

Rainfall has dropped by about 70%, devastating the majority of non-irrigated farmland.

"This is the line between families being able to stay in their homes or needing to leave," noted an official.

Everyday Hardships

Rural households are selling animals to make up for lost incomes, cutting back their daily diet.

Hunger-related issues cases among young ones and pregnant women are rising.

Grain is a essential commodity in Syria, used for flatbread and noodles—cheap items that are now increasing in value.

For Sanaa Mahamid aged thirty-nine, purchasing staples has become increasingly hard.

Having several dependents, she counts on her children' wages, which are not basic needs.

"At times we need to get money simply to afford bread," she said.

Last year, a bag of bread was priced at 500 Syrian pounds, but currently it is 4,500.

For her dependents, she needs multiple bags a daily—a financial burden of nine thousand currency units, before other items.

Government and International Actions

This crisis presents a serious challenge for the government, which is striving to rebuild the economy after years of war.

Aid agencies are offering food support for those most vulnerable, but experts warn that these are temporary measures.

"The goal is to help agricultural workers in the agricultural industry," commented a program director.

Direct payments have been provided to local growers who suffered their entire crops.

But, after over a decade of war, Syria's farming system was already damaged by financial crisis, destroyed water systems, and unusable fields.

Resource Shortage

Within vital farming zones, wheat fields require several watering rounds per season, but as a result of lack of rainfall, many cultivators are unable to manage.

"A farmer's first concern is securing resources," said a local agriculture director.

Water depends on energy, and costs have skyrocketed significantly, hitting eleven thousand to 12,000 pounds per unit.

Soaring energy costs and ongoing outages have rendered water pumps unaffordable for numerous farmers.

Future Solutions

A goal for the administration is investing in irrigation systems—including solar-powered drip systems—to provide water more accessible.

But those plans need long-term investment and funding—luxuries that wheat farmers lack at present.

Thus, for millions people throughout the country, there is simply one thing to count on in the upcoming months: hope for rainfall.