Near East Foundation 2012 Annual Report

Improving Income from Olives in Palestine
With support from USAID, and working with our local partner, the Palestinian Center for Agricultural
Research and Development, NEF established 60 one-acre “farmer field schools” to demonstrate the impact
of very simple techniques for improving olive productivity.
Modern irrigation technologies, which have enabled farmers in places like Israel to manage water scarcity
and become more competitive in the marketplace, have been beyond the financial and technical reach of
most Palestinian farmers until now. A combination of micro-dose irrigation, organic fertilizer, and simple
pest control has yielded a 280 percent increase in oil production and a 180 percent increase in profitability.
The farmer field schools have had an immediate demonstration effect, with at least 1,200 farmers
adopting at least some of the techniques in their own fields. The initiative has also led to the creation of
small ancillary businesses to prepare irrigation micro-basins and to deliver water.
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