Egypt's Agriculture Minister Ezz Eddin Abu Steit signed a cooperation protocol with a representative of the UN's agricultural body on Sunday, to modernize the country's sustainable agricultural development strategy. The protocol, to be funded by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) technical cooperation programme, includes developing a working plan to implement the 2030 strategy. The 2030 Sustainable Agricultural Development Strategy needs to be reviewed in light of the recent economic and social developments, Abu Steit said, noting that his ministry pays great attention to digital agriculture and climate change. Upon the agreement, all staffers at the agricultural sector and research bodies will receive workshops and training courses on skills development and capacity-building, the agriculture minister added. In this regard, Abu Steit called for applying digital agriculture to all fields related to agriculture, in addition to promoting agricultural extension via modern technologies to provide farmers with information, data and knowledge. This move could contribute to increasing agricultural productivity and enhancing the quality of agricultural crops, in addition to educating farmers on negative impacts of climate change, he added. The minister hailed the important role played by the FAO in bringing about real agricultural development around the world, especially in Egypt. For his part, Hussein Gadin, the FAO's Egypt representative, said the signing of the protocol comes as part of the national programme inked between the UN agency and the agriculture ministry from 2018 to 2022. The programme focuses on boosting agricultural productivity, raising food security and strengthening the sustainable use of natural agricultural resources, he added.
