Iraq's Wheat Crisis: A Drought Threatening Food Security

Iraq's wheat production faces severe challenges as water levels in the Euphrates and Tigris rivers plummet. The country's efforts to achieve wheat self-sufficiency may succumb to the worst drought in decades and upstream damming by neighboring countries. Farmers are struggling, and food security is threatened.

Iraqi wheat farmers like Ma'an al-Fatlawi face a grim future as crucial water sources dry up. With unprecedented droughts and water mismanagement from neighboring countries, Iraq's once promising wheat yields might plummet this season.

The U.N. ranks Iraq high on climate risk, with rising temperatures and dwindling rainfall posing existential threats. The International Energy Agency predicts further temperature spikes, while Turkey and Iran cut Iraq's water supply by controlling rivers upstream.

Despite government initiatives to curb import dependence, with subsidized farming inputs and modern irrigation techniques, the drought risks undoing progress. The looming crisis threatens economies and displaces rural communities, turning Iraq's environmental issue into a socioeconomic challenge.

(With inputs from agencies.)