The current agricultural season has witnessed a notable expansion in the cultivation of wheat and barley across Syrian governorates compared with previous seasons, particularly after the al-Jazira region returned to the national agricultural plan.
The total cultivated area of wheat and barley has exceeded 2.8 million hectares across both irrigated and rain-fed lands. Production is expected to reach around 2.3 million tons if favorable climatic conditions continue in the coming period.
Saeed Ibrahim, Director of Agricultural Planning and Economy at the Syrian Ministry of Agriculture, said the planned area for wheat cultivation this season reached 1.4 million hectares, including 640,000 hectares of irrigated land and 830,000 hectares of rain-fed land.
The planted area reached about 1.2 million hectares, achieving 86% of the planned target. Of this total, 501,000 hectares are irrigated and 763,000 hectares are rain-fed.
Ibrahim added that the planned area for barley cultivation is also about 1.4 million hectares, including 100,000 hectares irrigated and 1.3 million hectares rain-fed. The planted area reached about one million hectares, representing 86% of the plan, most of it in rain-fed lands, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA).
According to Ibrahim, the current agricultural season has shown clear improvement compared with the previous season, when implementation rates did not exceed 76% for wheat and 70% for barley.
He attributed the improvement to heavy rainfall across Syrian governorates this year, along with farmers expanding rain-fed cultivation and improving fertilization and crop management.
Ibrahim noted that most rain-fed lands dropped out of production last season due to climate changes, low rainfall, and rising temperatures, which negatively affected yields. However, improved weather conditions this year allowed new areas to return to production.
Regarding the expected production of 2.3 million tons, Ibrahim explained that the higher implementation rate of the agricultural plan and the expansion of cultivated areas increase the chances of reaching this level of output.
Preventive measures
The Director of Agricultural Planning and Economy urged farmers to adopt drought-resistant wheat varieties. He explained that the General Organization for Seed Multiplication provides treated and cleaned seeds and distributes them to governorates according to the varietal map approved by the General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research.
Ibrahim added that the Ministry of Agriculture launched the “al-Qard al-Hasan” (interest-free loan) project at the beginning of the current season to support wheat cultivation in Syria. The project provides wheat seeds as well as nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers to farmers.
The support aims to cultivate around 300,000 hectares, giving priority to irrigated areas. Farmers can access the loan under simplified conditions by submitting either an agricultural organization document or a field inspection report confirming the land’s suitability for cultivation.
The Ministry of Agriculture’s five-year plan (2026–2030) focuses on cultivating improved high-yield varieties that are resistant to drought and disease, while adopting climate-smart agricultural practices. The plan aims to ensure optimal use of available resources, achieve sustainable productivity and high crop quality, and develop and introduce high-yield varieties of major crops.
Wheat is considered one of Syria’s main strategic crops. Between 1990 and 2010, the country’s average wheat production exceeded four million tons. Syria recorded its highest production in 2006 at 4.9 million tons, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.
Domestic consumption averaged about 2.5 million tons, leaving an export surplus ranging between 1.2 and 1.5 million tons.
Winter grain cultivation in 2025 was delayed due to late rainfall in November 2024. The season was also severely disrupted by ongoing conflicts, population displacement, the governmental transition in late 2024, and drought conditions between October 2024 and January, according to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
In May 2025, Saeed Ibrahim told Enab Baladi that the planned area for wheat cultivation was 1.4 million hectares, representing one-third of the total planned agricultural rotation areas.
At that time, the planted area reached 1.09 million hectares, representing 76% implementation. This included 425,000 hectares of irrigated land (73% implementation) and 674,000 hectares of rain-fed land (77%).
Estimated production, based on the overall crop condition (good, average, or weak), reached 772,838 tons. Production estimates were reduced because most rain-fed areas were excluded from calculations, while some lands were allocated for grazing after crops failed to reach the harvest stage due to weak plant growth.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture official, Syria’s annual wheat requirement is estimated at about four million tons, based on a population of roughly 22.5 million people in 2020.
Therefore, last year’s estimated production covered only about 19% of the country’s needs, leaving an estimated shortfall of nearly 80%.
Conditions of the “al-Qard al-Hasan” wheat support loan
On November 16, the Syrian Ministry of Agriculture announced the launch of the “al-Qard al-Hasan” project to support wheat cultivation by providing farmers with in-kind loans to help revive the agricultural sector and strengthen food security.
The loan includes wheat seeds as well as nitrogen and phosphate fertilizers.
The Ministry of Agriculture’s media office told Enab Baladi that farmers must meet several conditions to benefit from the in-kind loan:
Proof of land possession: Farmers must submit an official document proving their possession of agricultural land suitable for cultivation. This can be either an agricultural organization document (the primary document required for obtaining the loan) or a field inspection report issued by the relevant agricultural directorate after confirming the land’s suitability for farming. Providing guarantees (for field inspection applicants): Farmers applying through a field inspection report must present guarantees from two financially credible guarantors accepted by the Cooperative Agricultural Bank, or provide real estate collateral. Contractual commitment: Farmers must sign an in-kind loan agreement with the Cooperative Agricultural Bank, committing to cooperate fully with inspection and monitoring committees and to provide accurate information.The ministry’s media office noted that the loan amount granted to each farmer will depend on the size of the land to be cultivated. The required quantity of wheat seeds and fertilizers per hectare will be calculated accordingly and provided on that basis.
Loan repayment will begin immediately after the harvest season. The loan carries no interest, as it is provided in the form of agricultural inputs rather than cash.
Regarding evaluation of the project’s success, the ministry stated that the assessment will take place after the harvest season, taking into account farmers’ commitment to cultivation and the expected production volumes.
If the project proves successful, it may later expand to include additional crops. For now, however, it is limited to wheat due to its strategic importance.
Wheat and Barley Cultivation Sees Noticeable Improvement in Syria Enab Baladi.
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