Yemen Environmental Bulletin: The Decline of Tihama Date Production and Yemen’s Agricultural Collapse

Aug 14, 2020 | Wim Zwijnenburg
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Yemen’s fertile wadis that flow down from the mountainous areas on the west coast have been an essential lifeline for a population that has relied on its water for agricultural production for millennia. Farmers on the Tihama plains, which run along the Red Sea coast of the Arabian Peninsula, grow many types of vegetables and fruits as well as cereals such as sorghum, and keep livestock along the rivers that are used for irrigation. Among the distinctive trees grown in this area of Hudaydah governorate – as well as the governorate of Hadramawt – are date palms. From 2008 to 2012, Yemen harvested roughly 57 metric tons of dates from more than 4 million date palms, making it a strategic food security crop. The palms, known as the Phoenix dactylifera L., grow in dozens of varieties, better known as cultivars, and their dates have high nutritional value from their fibers and sugar. Growing date trees requires maintenance, specialized knowledge and access to water and equipment. 

Over the past decade, the date farmers have struggled with multiple challenges. Pests such as the red palm weevil and plagues of locust have festered in the plantations. Increasing desertification, induced by climate crises, and invasive plant species have taken their toll on the water sources needed to grow date palms. A sharp decline in production has occurred during the current war, with estimates that roughly half the four million palms have been lost since the start of the conflict. These are significant numbers considering that food insecurity has contributed to pushing millions of Yemenis to the brink of starvation.