DAMASCUS, SYRIA — Syria has nearly doubled it local wheat purchasing price for the 2021 season to £S900 from £S425 in the previous season, Reuters reported, citing Syria’s state news agency.
The Syrian pound has continued to decline in value when in 2019 it held steady at about 500 to the dollar and then fell to a low of 4,000 to the dollar earlier this month.
The continued 10-year conflict has caused economic issues in Syria leading to a smaller wheat import budget creating long wait times across the country for subsidized bread, Reuters reported.
Prior to the conflict Syria produced about four million tonnes of wheat per year and exported 1.5 million tonnes. But according to a United Nations Food and Agriculture estimate, the country produced between 2.1 million and 2.4 million tonnes of wheat last year.
