Kurdistan creates board to ensure food security during COVID-19 pandemic

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Regional Government's (KRG) Minister of Trade and Industry announced in a press conference on Wednesday the establishment of a new board tasked with ensuring that the coronavirus pandemic and measures enacted to control it do not interrupt the adequate and reliable food supply available to residents of the autonomous region. 

In a series of preventive measures, the KRG as early as February initiated several precautionary steps to curb the spread of coronavirus. Since then, the Kurdistan Region has witnessed a very low rate of infections when compared to the rest of Iraq and regional neighbors such as Iran and Turkey. Such measures, especially restrictions on movement, can significantly hinder trade and shipment of essential food items.

The board, explained Minister Kamal Muslim, will supervise the provision of food products in cooperation with traders, importers, and other related businessmen vital to the Kurdistan Region's food supply. In addition, it will also distribute 10,000 tons of wheat flour, four million tons of cooking oil, and other essential food items to low-income families as part of a giveaway of some 250,000 food baskets.

The KRG launched a donation campaign to raise funds in order to better fight the pandemic in late March under the name “We are stronger together.” Roughly $10 million from the donations has been allocated to food purchases, explained Sanaw Faraidun Jwanroee, Head of the KRG Department of Administration and Finance in the Council of Ministers. The remaining $15,513 million has been allocated for ensuring medications supply.

Last week, The KRG announced plans to support the growth of greenhouses, to develop infrastructure on farming and other food-production, and increase tariffs charged on imported agricultural goods as part of efforts to make the Kurdistan Region more self-sustainable. 

Read More: Kurdistan Region to boost agriculture for increased self-sustainability

Aside from the obvious economic advantages of boosting local agriculture, it also is a key prerequisite to becoming as “food independent” as possible, an issue that has emerged in the minds of many after seeing the effects of both the coronavirus and shortages that resulted from embargoes Baghdad imposed on the autonomous region after its independence referendum of late 2017.

Over the past few years, farmers in the Kurdistan Region have called on the KRG to block the significant flow of foreign products that are already produced or grown domestically, lowering market prices to the point where it is difficult to make a living.

Editing by John J. Catherine