FAO, Italy, Ministry of Agriculture launch project to support urban forestry in Jordan

AMMAN — The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Ministry of Agriculture launched on Monday the “Green Cities Initiative (GCI): Flagship cities for integrated green oases and food systems”, which promotes the support urban forestry and urban greening in Jordan. This project is funded by Italy through the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS).

In line with the agreement signed by the parties, FAO conducted an inception workshop to acquaint stakeholders and programme partners with the scope and outlines of the project, in addition to covering the implementation strategy and work plan. The workshop was attended by a group of selected stakeholders and government partners, according to a statement for The Jordan Times.

The aim of this global project, where Jordan is partner in this initiative, is to support the urban forestry and urban greening for improved resilience, health and wellbeing of urban communities in drylands. It contributes to the FAO Green Cities Initiative (GCI) which has been identified by the FAO director-general as a priority area and is closely linked to the Better Environment strategic objective, especially on “Achieving sustainable urban food systems”, “climate change mitigating and adapted in agri-food systems” and “biodiversity and ecosystem services for food and agriculture”. 

The project allows FAO to coordinate efforts with partners, provide integrated technical responses and pool financial contributions. The GCI initiative works closely with FAO decentralised offices and align with FAO Country Programming Frameworks and United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework to strive for synergies and increased cooperation among the UN agencies on the ground. To ensure coherence where possible, the framework will be aligned with the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets and indicators, in particular those under SDG 11, SDG 2, SDG 6, SDG 8, SDG 12, SDG 13 and SDG 15.

The project activities that will be conducted in Amman are: The rehabilitation of children parks in the municipality of Amman, Green Roof Initiatives in collaboration with local communities and schools and includes technical and capacity building for stakeholders for the promotion of urban agriculture, according to the statement.

FAO representative in Jordan, Nabil Assaf, said, “This project is a continuation of our partnership with AICS where FAO has worked with the Italian government and the agency through several national and regional projects. This project will contribute to strengthen community resilience to climatic, health, food and economic crisis, as well as to reduce the impact of urbanisation on biodiversity and the surrounding natural environment. This global project will serve Chad, Jordan, Mongolia, Namibia, South Sudan and Tunisia.”

Giorgio Bassotti, first secretary and head of economic, cultural and scientific section at the Italian embassy stated, “Climate change is a common challenge, which requires a common response. Working together with FAO, we see this initiative as an opportunity to further strengthen the ties of friendship between Italy and Jordan.”

Khaled Al Haisa, delegate of the minister of Agriculture, appreciated this initiative, which has become more urgent within the framework of achieving sustainable development and facing the challenges that coincided with the expansion of cities and the increase in the population of urban areas, who constitute 70 per cent of the world’s population, consume 80 per cent of energy, and produce 70 per cent. of waste and contribute to increasing greenhouse gas emissions.

The start of this project’s activities will be in May 2024 until December 2024, where local communities and stakeholders will be trained on good practices in green roofs and green parks, composting techniques, hydroponics activities, and urban forestry and agriculture in green space management, the statement said.

Also the FAO and the Ministry of Environment launched on Monday a project to promote the cultivation of local species to mitigate the effects of climate change and protect biodiversity in Jordan, according to a statement for The Jordan Times.

In line with the agreement signed by the parties, FAO conducted an inception workshop to acquaint stakeholders and project partners with the scope and outlines of the project, in addition to covering the implementation strategy and work plan.

The workshop was held in the presence of the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Agriculture and a group of selected stakeholders and government partners, the statement said.

FAO representative in Jordan, Nabil Assaf, said, “This year, FAO will be working to increase forest productivity and profitability for local communities through this project. The project will target 100 hectares as part of afforestation activities and will target three communities in a comprehensive capacity-building programme to provide communities with the necessary knowledge to protect and save Jordan’s forests. It will also guide communities in valuing forest products by benefiting from them. By utilising FAO’s knowledge and experience in the forestry sector, the project will work alongside our government counterparts as we all share common priorities to protect and enhance the role of forests in Jordan.”

The representative of the Minister of Environment said that Jordan has signed many international environmental agreements, the most important of which is the International Convention for the Protection of Biological Diversity, in addition to signing the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification. He added that these projects are evidence of continued efforts and approaches aimed at protecting lands from drought, adapting to the effects of climate change and sustaining natural elements.

For his part, the representative of the minister of Agriculture stressed on the importance of preserving the forest wealth in Jordan, including the Carob tree, which is considered a drought-tolerant species and is grown in natural environments. These trees are a habitat for local plants and animals. Supporting carob value chains will contribute to a better understanding of this product and thus support the improvement of communities’ capacity and knowledge about carob, which will positively impact their livelihoods.

This project is fully funded by FAO, the activities will start in May 2024 until December 2024. The project will be implemented in northern and central part of Jordan in sites to be selected based on the FAO technical support in collaboration the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture. The surrounding local communities will be trained to use and market products derived from forests and indigenous species, and the role of youth and women in such opportunities will be encouraged, according to the statement.