1.9 million Sufri palm trees in Bisha enhance economic resources

JEDDAH: Bisha province is a rich oasis in the southwest of Saudi Arabia that has always been known for its fertile land. It joins between the valleys coming from the high mountains, called Palm Bisha, Green Bisha and Black Bisha, where another 45 sub-valleys also meet.
With the recent agricultural reawakening in Saudi Arabia, the General Directorate of Agriculture has started to rehabilitate the agricultural sector with expert farmers. It is protecting the date palm from various diseases, namely the red palm weevil and others.
The director of the Ministry of Environment in the province of Bisha, Salem Al-Qarni, said palm trees in the province are free of all pesticides and are fully organic, stressing that cooperation with the farmers and addressing all pests was one of the most important factors for the safety and productivity of the palms. He noted that Bisha is famous for the diversity of its trees spreading along the edges of its valleys.
Bisha relies on the rainwater falling on the western and southern mountains, as well as on the city’s highlands. Because of the importance of different sources of water, the Ministry of Environment, Agriculture and Water worked on creating four dams to ensure the permanent existence of water to guarantee the stability of the agricultural sector.
Bisha provides the local markets with many products such as dates, citrus products and honey. However, it lacks proper marketing for external exportation, which contributes to the significant decline of the products’ value.
Within the framework of the Economic Forum for Dates in Bisha, the province worked with the partnership of Bisha University, the National Center for Palm and Dates, and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry on promoting date production to ensure a proper market value that supports the farmer and enhances the resources.
The Sufri product is known to be the best produced locally and is in high demand from many companies. The statistics center at the Sufri Bisha festival recorded that more than 1.9 million palm trees are highly productive in Bisha, producing around 40 percent of exported dates from the KSA to the world.