Agriculture

The climate crisis has had an immediate impact on access to drinking and irrigation water, as well as on the production of crops. Both the Tigris and Euphrates serve as a critical lifeline not only for water security, but also for agriculture, livelihood, and food production. Agricultural development is a vital component of Iraq’s economy as the sector employs one-fifth of the country’s workforce. Further, the primary source of income for farmers throughout the country is both rain fed and irrigated crop production, particularly harvesting wheat, barley, fruit, and vegetables.

The contribution of agriculture to the gross domestic product of Iraq declined from 9% in 2002 to 3.6% in 2009 mainly due to internal conflict and an increased population flow from rural to urban areas. From 2014 to 2017, Iraq’s agricultural output decreased from about $15 billion to about $7.6 billion although this was largely because of the incursion of the Islamic State.

Across wide areas of rain fed crops, the majority of farmers now find the seasonal rainfall is no longer sufficient for their crops to thrive. These communities are forced to use less water for irrigation and many are seeking new water sources namely by drilling boreholes to access water which in turn depletes valuable ground water reserves. Other districts have resorted to purchasing water and trucking it in. However, some districts have minimal alternatives for water sources and cannot purchase water for socioeconomic reasons, farmers report lacking the income to buy more water.

Across a number of Governorates reports of up to 90% percent wheat crop failure are now common. Many farming households have little choice but to reduce the area of land cultivated, thereby reducing harvests resulting in lower quantities of crops to harvest for consumption as well as income derived from selling surplus produce.

Traditional agricultural methods of moving water along irrigation channels and canals is becoming inefficient with increasing scarcity of water and high levels of percolation and evaporation. Taking advantage of regular flooding which for centuries has brought silt and sediments to replenish the vitality of the land can no longer be guaranteed, new technologies need to be employed and support given to the farming communities.