For the first time, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has launched a cash-for-work program aimed at rehabilitating land and agricultural infrastructure in Iraq.
The program, funded by the Belgian government, supports 12,000 conflict-affected people in 30 villages in the provinces of Kirkuk, Anbar, Salaheddine and Nineveh.
Local farmers benefit from this program, which helps them to resume or expand their activities through rehabilitated infrastructure and provide agricultural livelihood opportunities for displaced persons returning to their areas.
The program targets families with no other income sources, including women who are usually sole breadwinners and people with special needs.
“The use of mobile technology will simplify the safe transfer of cash transfers to participants who are among the most vulnerable in the country,” said Fadel al-Zoubi, the FAO representative in Iraq, who said that providing income opportunities for rural families affected by the conflict is vital. Alive”.
To facilitate the payment process, FAO has partnered with Zain and its eight mobile operators in eight countries in the Middle East and Africa to register their names and personal ID numbers in advance, and then give them SIM cards for mobile phones.
When each participant completes a specific number of working days, he receives an SMS with a personal security code. This participant can then receive his salary from any authorized agent for transfer of funds provided that his identity number and security code match the registered numbers.
Some 12 million Iraqis live in rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihoods. Long years of conflict have destroyed crops, equipment, infrastructure, livestock, seeds, crops and food stocks, leaving 3.2 million food insecure Iraqis.

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