Turkish Trade Minister Ömer Bolat announced on Saturday that his country had raised the quota of Palestinian dates exempt from customs duties from 3 to 5 thousand tons.
In a post on his account on the “X” platform, he mentioned his meeting with the Palestinian Minister of Economy (former Khaled Asseily) in December 2023.
He added that he and Minister Asseily reached the necessity of raising the share of Palestinian dates exempt from customs duties, so that this would be announced today.
The Turkish minister expressed his hope that this step would bring goodness to the Palestinian economy, which he said was one of its basic elements.
Bolat affirmed that Turkey will continue to “meet the demands of the Palestinian brothers in various fields and by all means available to us.”
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For its part, the Palestinian Ministry of National Economy quoted in a statement the Minister of Economy, Muhammad Al-Amour, as welcoming “the Turkish government’s decision.”
It added, “The Turkish decision comes in response to the Palestinian request regarding raising the quota of Palestinian dates exempt from customs and facilitating the entry of customs-free Palestinian agricultural products into Turkish markets.”
According to the statement, Al-Amour expressed, in a telephone call with Bolat, “his thanks and appreciation to Turkey as president, government and people for this decision that strengthens the steadfastness of Palestinian farmers in particular, and for all aspects of the continuing support that Turkey provides to the Palestinian people politically and economically and for the relief it provides to our people in the Gaza Strip.” .
In the 2023 season, date production in Palestine was estimated at about 18,000 tons, produced on 870 farms employing about 5,000 workers, according to statements by former Minister of Agriculture Riyad Al-Attar in September 2023, reported by official Palestinian news at the time.
According to Al-Attari, the revenues of this sector exceed $100 million annually, noting that Palestinian dates will reach 60 markets internationally during 2022.
