September 19, 2023

Jordan: Climate-Smart Agriculture Action Plan – Investment Opportunities in Transitioning the Agriculture Sector to a Climate-Resilient Growth Trajectory – Jordan

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This report examines how climate change will put pressure on Jordan’s water resources and negatively affect agricultural production through water scarcity, higher temperatures and more frequent extreme events. The suitability profile of major crops currently grown in Jordan will change. Potato suitability will deteriorate, barley and wheat suitability will become more marginal. Yields of olives will remain stable, while those of tomatoes and dates are expected to increase. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) offers opportunities to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change, while promoting continued growth and job creation.

This CSA Action Plan used quantitative and participatory tools to prioritize investment packages for each of Jordan’s agro-ecological zones: expansion of date palms and protected vegetables in irrigated parts of the Jordan Valley and highlands , production and processing of olives and production of barley in rainfed regions, and small ruminant sectors and restoration of Badia in agropastoral areas. Both at the farm level and at the aggregate level, the cost-benefit analysis shows a generally good return on investment for all CSA packages. All packages also promise to increase water productivity, create jobs in high-value export chains, and directly and indirectly benefit farmers and vulnerable populations. The aggregate economic profitability of the six packages was estimated based on a combination of net incremental profit at the operating level, annual adoption rate, and large-scale investment costs beyond the l operations, such as training and equipment for crop storage and processing: and the number of beneficiaries targeted.