Egypt's Minister of Trade and Industry Tarek Qabil has opened Friday the Second Egyptian Date Palm Festival in Siwa, 560 km (348 miles) from Cairo. On Behalf of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, the festival is running between October 27 and 29. Egyptian Minister of Agriculture Essam Fayed, UAE ambassador in Cairo Gomaa Mubarak El Geneiby, and Arab League representatives have participated in the opening ceremony. Matrouh Governor Alaa Abu-Zeid, New Valley Governor Mahmoud Ashmawy, Giovanna Ceglie, Representative and Head of UNIDO Regional Office in Cairo, Abdel Wahab Zayed, UAE Chief Technical Advisor and Director of the Date Palm Research and Development Programme, have also attended the ceremony. Ministry of Trade and Industry has organised the festival in cooperation with Ministry of Agriculture, Khalifa International Date Palm Award, UNIDO, FAO, and Officials in Matruh and New Valley governorates. Siwa Community Development and Environmental Protection Association and a number of NGOs have also organised the festival in participation with dates manufacturers and exporters alongside farmers specialized in date and palms. Hussein Gadsden, Officer in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization's Regional (FAO), and a number of governmental representatives have also taken part in the Egyptian festival.
