Organic agriculture for Iraq: a SWOT analysis exercise
New Medit, vol 11, n.4, suppl. (December 2012), pp. 73-75
Language: EN
The reconstruction of the Iraqi agro-food sector has happened with the post conflict decisions largely taken by the Provisional Government, without much involvement of local stake-holders. As a matter of fact, even the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) was largely understaffed and many experienced people had left the country. Presently, Iraqi institutions are becoming stronger and it is possible to imagine a more participatory approach to policy design. Organic agriculture, for several reasons, is one of the likely options, but it needs to be framed within a comprehensive agricultural policy. For this purpose, a SWOT analysis has been conducted with a group of Iraqi MoA officers attending a training program in Italy. Organic agriculture is confirmed as an option for development, but there is a long list of threats which might affect the whole Iraqi agriculture.
Iraq, expert consultation, agricultural policy
