Shafaq News- Baghdad
The Iraqi government should review the 2026 summeragricultural plan and support mechanisms for the farming sector, Iraqi lawmakerBaez Al-Zarzari said on Monday, accusing authorities of “discriminating”against farmers in the Kurdistan Region in the allocation of farmland, wheatprocurement, and government assistance.
Al-Zarzari told Shafaq News that he had concerns aboutdecisions made by the coordination committee overseeing this year’sagricultural plan, explaining that it allocated large areas for ricecultivation in the provinces of Najaf, Al-Diwaniyah, and Dhi Qar, while alsoassigning around 36,200 hectares of groundwater-irrigated land to otherprovinces.
In contrast, he said, fertile agricultural land in theKurdistan Region had been overlooked.
The lawmaker urged the government to “treat all regionsequally and not prevent the investment of the Kurdistan Region’s agriculturalpotential.”
On wheat production, Al-Zarzari noted that output in theKurdistan Region during the current season was “very strong” and could exceedtwo million tons. However, he argued that limiting government procurement to400,000 tons would unfairly affect farmers in the Region, calling for the quotato be increased.
He also criticized the government’s wheat purchase price,saying it was “significantly lower than last year,” and called for reinstatingthe previous rate or unifying prices in a way that protects farmers’ rights.
Al-Zarzari further accused the government of deprivingfarmers in the Region of access to fertilizer support, agricultural loans, andpesticides, despite what he described as large budget allocations for theagricultural sector in other parts of Iraq.
He called for a “national and fair approach” to agriculturepolicy across Iraq.
His remarks followed Iraq’s Ministries of Agriculture andWater Resources' approval of the 2026 summer agricultural plan, which includesdesignated areas for cultivating rice, yellow corn, and vegetables, whilecontinuing to rely on modern irrigation techniques to address water shortagesand drought conditions.
