AMMAN — Head of the
Jordan Valley Farmers Union Adnan
Khaddam said that the Ministry of Agriculture should pay compensation to
farmers affected by the frost as soon as possible in order for them to be able to pay
their obligations to the agricultural companies and cultivate the land again to
recoup some of their losses.
اضافة اعلان
Khaddam stressed
that the farmers’ crops were greatly damaged and they now need government
support, especially since the sector is “still suffering from unjust government
decisions” that have placed more burden on them. Among these decisions, he
said, is obliging farmers to pay guarantees for guest workers while they are in
their country and during vacations, and to pay high permit fees.
Minister of Agriculture Khaled Hneifat said the committee tasked with assessing the
January frost-inflicted damage completed its job; it found that the areas affected
throughout the Kingdom amount to 34,818 dunums, and that the affected crops were fruit
trees ,some tropical trees, and banana crops in the Jordan
Valley.
Hneifat said
that 20,477 dunums of land planted with vegetables, 14,341 dunums of fruit trees,
and 2,405 greenhouses were damaged.
Badi Bishish, a
farmer from the Jordan Valley, said that his banana crops were badly affected
by the frost, and such loss is significant because banana crops are seasonal.
Regarding
vegetables, Bishish said that his zucchini crop was “completely destroyed”. he
planted zucchini again, but the frost damaged it.
Ministry of
Agriculture spokesperson
Lawrence Majali said that the ministry will expedite
compensating farmers in accordance with government mechanisms and rules, adding
that the ministry will “spare no effort in following up on the issue”.
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