Halabja launches its 9th pomegranates festival

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The Kurdistan Region’s Halabja province on Thursday launched the 9th Pomegranates and Autumn Festival, attracting hundreds of local visitors.

At least 600 farmers are attending the festival, where they display numerous varieties of Kurdish pomegranates in Halabja.

Local officials, residents, and citizens from other Kurdistan Region provinces attended the inauguration of the annual event. Members of the diplomatic community also attended.

Besides pomegranates, other local products are set to be displayed, including nuts and honey from other Kurdistan Region areas.

The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) is financially supporting the festival as part of its efforts to promote local produce. The government exported the first batch of pomegranates to the Gulf market last year under the “Hanar” brand, the Kurdish name for pomegranates.

The festival aims to display the Kurdish produce and build a cultural bridge between the attendees, Azad Tofiq, the governor, told Kurdistan 24 on Thursday.

Despite the financial crisis, the KRG did not “disappoint us”, he said, extending his gratitude for the support the government provided.

In August, the government launched a training course for Kurdish farmers.

Dubbed the National Training Program, the courses provide skills in farm management, irrigation, and packaging.

The Kurdistan Region in the summer similarly exported 300 tons of potatoes to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which similarly received Kurdish pomegranates last year, marking the first official export of Kurdish produce to the Gulf region under the government’s supervision as part of a pilot project.