UAE-based Mair Group and NVSSoft for Agricultural Technologies and Services have signed a memorandum of understanding with Syria’s Ministry of Agriculture to develop agricultural value chains, including crop collection, grading, packaging, cold storage and export preparation for Syrian fruit and vegetables.
The MoU was signed in Damascus on 6 July by Syria’s Minister of Agriculture, Basel al-Suwaidan, with representatives of Mair Group and NVSSoft. According to SANA, the agreement is intended to strengthen food security, support agricultural exports and improve commercial returns for Syrian farmers.
For the food and agricultural packaging sector, the agreement is relevant because it includes the establishment of four agricultural processing centres across Syria’s coastal, central, southern and eastern regions. These centres are expected to handle the post-harvest preparation of local produce, including sorting, grading, packaging and cold storage, before distribution to domestic and export markets.
Khaled Al-Saeedi, director of government communication at Syria’s Ministry of Agriculture, said the project would allow Syrian farmers to export fruit and vegetables directly to the UAE through a transit route via Iraq. The ministry said the route is aimed at reducing intermediaries, shortening delivery times and improving returns to producers.
Nehayan Alameri, chief executive officer of Mair Group, said the four centres would support the preparation of Syrian produce for export. Mohammad Samer Al-Suyouti, representing NVSSoft, said the company would develop a digital platform to collect and analyse agricultural data, expand contract farming and improve supply chain efficiency from farms to international markets.
The development gives the MoU a clear packaging and cold-chain infrastructure angle, as Syria looks to organise post-harvest handling and export-ready produce packaging for regional trade with Gulf markets.