Outstanding Jordanian Participation in the FAO’s 80th Anniversary Celebrations in Rome
A delegation from the Board of Directors of the Jordan Dates Association (JODA) took part in the celebrations organized by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on the occasion of its 80th anniversary. The event was held as part of the “From Seed to Food” exhibition at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy.
During the ceremony, the President of the Association, Eng. Anwar Haddad, presented a special honorary shield to FAO Director-General Dr. Qu Dongyu. The shield was made from palm fronds and carved with the image of Petra and the JODA logo, in recognition of FAO’s efforts in supporting and developing the date palm sector in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan through the “One Country One Priority Product” (OCOP) initiative, implemented by the organization in Jordan.
The event was attended by His Excellency the Jordanian Ambassador to Rome, Mr. Qais Abu Dayyeh, along with former FAO Director-General Mr. José Graziano da Silva, His Majesty the King of Lesotho from Southern Africa, and a number of high-level international dignitaries.
Eng. Anwar Haddad also presented a special honorary shield to Ambassador Abu Dayyeh in appreciation of his support in promoting Jordanian dates on international platforms.
Sedra Dates Company also participated in the exhibition, showcasing premium Jordanian date products in its pavilion. Additionally, a documentary film was screened during the event, highlighting the long history of Jordanian dates, which dates back over 4,000 years B.C.
Under the patronage of the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Saeb Khreisat, the Jordan Dates Association (JODA) organized a special celebration yesterday, Tuesday, to mark the fourth consecutive Jordanian Date Harvest Day. The celebration took place at the Agricultural Engineers Association’s station in the Karameh area of the Jordan Valley, where palm cultivation is concentrated.
The celebration was attended by a number of palm farmers and representatives of official bodies. This annual event has become a national platform to celebrate the year-long efforts of farmers, who have worked tirelessly to produce a distinctive crop that has become a benchmark in global markets.
Jordanian date production this year is estimated at approximately 36,000 tons of the finest date varieties, most notably the world-famous Mejhoul date, along with the Barhi variety and a number of other varieties. A special exhibition was held on the sidelines of the festival, featuring samples of this season’s production, a living testament to the quality of Jordanian dates, which are witnessing increasing global demand due to their distinctiveness and quality.
The area planted with palm trees in the Kingdom has exceeded 50,000 dunams, while the number of palm trees is approaching one million. Jordan’s production is expected to reach more than 50,000 tons in the next few years. Jordan also exports more than 65% of its date production to more than 55 countries around the world.
The Jordanian date sector provides more than 11,000 job opportunities, most of which are for women working in date workshops that employ the latest global technologies in packaging and marketing operations. This makes this sector an important economic lever for the national economy and the agricultural sector.
The festival honored several figures who support the Jordanian date sector as honorary members of the association in recognition of their efforts in enhancing the status of this national product, which has become a leading player on the global market map.
