Olive festival boosts agricultural sector in northern Jordan

Northern Jordan (ILO News)—Irbid’s annual Olive and Rural Produce Festival began on Thursday (3 December), attracting hundreds of local residents, business owners, government officials and local organizations.

The festival is an opportunity for local residents to market their produce and agricultural products on a commercial scale and serves as a platform for stakeholders to explore ways to further develop the sector.

The festival kicked off with Syrian and Jordanian folk dancing before proceedings moved to the exhibition hall. On display were different types of olive oils and fresh olives, olive-based dishes, soaps, flower displays as well as traditional arts and handicrafts.

“We support the olive sector because it’s proved its worth to local communities,” said Akef Al-Zoubi, Jordan’s Minister of Agriculture. “We support the sector’s expansion and success through a partnership between the government, the private sector and others, including the ILO. This festival is an example of this partnership.”

The four-day event, organized by the local development committee of the Irbid Governorate and the Irbid Directorate of Agriculture, is being funded by the ILO for a second year to encourage economic development and livelihoods in areas most affected by the influx of refugees, namely the governorates of Mafraq and Irbid in Northern Jordan.

“The success of last year’s festival has lead to more people being eager to participate,” said Ali Abu Nokta, head of the Directorate of Agriculture in Irbid and chief organiser of the festival. “This year we have more participants and we also have new and more diverse products being marketed and sold at the festival.”

The ILO support is part of a development-focused strategy to support both refugees and host community residents. One of the key components of the ILO’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis is to enhance employment opportunities and livelihoods in host communities straining to cope with the influx of large numbers of refugees. By December 2015, the number of registered Syrian refugees in Jordan had reached 633,000, the majority of whom live in urban areas and outside of refugee camps.

“The ILO will continue to support the economies of communities most affected by the Syrian refugee crisis in Jordan through such festivals and other livelihood initiatives,” said Maha Kattaa, ILO coordinator for the Syrian Refugee Response in Jordan. “We hope this annual festival will become self-sustainable through partnerships with the private sector as well as funding from various local partners.”

While the ILO’s work in this regard has so far largely focused on agriculture, a three-year local economic development plan, drafted by various ministries, as well as employer and worker representatives and academics, with the help of the ILO, aims at generating employment in various other industries.

Some of the ILO’s other current interventions include the implementation of Employment Intensive Investment Programmes (EIIP) in Irbid and Mafraq, aimed at creating employment opportunities for both host communities and Syrian refugees as well as enhancing local agricultural infrastructure in both affected areas.

The festival attracted local farmers, agricultural engineers and the owners of olive presses and other businesses.

Mother-of-six Um Mohammed has been her household’s sole breadwinner since her husband died over 20 years ago. She makes a living selling produce grown on her farms. She hopes to raise enough money to buy a greenhouse to expand her business.

“My farm is my only source of income. I hope this festival will open up more opportunities for me so I can expand my business,” she said.

Khaled Malkawi, an olive press owner, said he hoped to attract more business interests through the festival. “Our aim to is market our virgin olive oil, which is very different from the product found in most shops. We want people to appreciate the difference in quality. I hope to sell as much of our oil as possible and make new contacts in the industry.”

Um Yousef, a visitor to the festival, said it is important for residents to support local products.

“Many families here are in need of our economic support. So I am here to buy some wonderful home-cooked food. I will spread the word to others to come here and do the same,” Um Yousef said.

On December 6, a two-day ILO-supported festival will be held in Ramtha, a northern Jordanain city close to the Syrian border. Organized by the Agricultural Engineers Association, the festival will provide the poorest of Jordanian and Syrian families with an opportunity for income generation through selling home-made food and other rural products.

Ramtha has been particularly hard hit by the arrival of large numbers of refugees. It is estimated that Ramtha’s population has almost doubled since the start of Syrian crisis to include over 40,000 refugees, the majority of whom have lost their livelihoods.