Baghdad : The UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) has adopted a new mobile money transfer technology to enable many vulnerable rural families in Iraq to safely receive income as part of a cash-for-work program to rehabilitate farming infrastructure.

“The use of mobile technology will streamline the safe delivery of cash transfers to participants, who are some of the most vulnerable people in the country,” said Fadel El-Zubi, FAO representative in Iraq.

Participants, who are from households with no other income source, include women – often the sole breadwinners for their families – and people with a disability. The workers and their families are people who either remained in their villages during conflict or returned home after being displaced by the fighting.

“Providing income opportunities is critical in rural areas affected by conflict, where competition for employment is high, jobs are scarce and people are struggling to support their families,” said El-Zubi.

The program, which is funded by the Belgian government, will support 12,000 conflict-affected people in 30 villages in Kirkuk, Anbar, Salah al-Din and Ninewa governorates. It will benefit local farmers by enabling them to restart or expand farming activities with rehabilitated infrastructure and provides agricultural livelihoods opportunities for displaced people returning home.

—AB/IINA