CAIRO: Japan, through a $3 million grant, and the World Bank are partnering with Egypt to support the country's efforts in modernizing irrigation. The Japan Social Development Fund (JSDF) will provide the grant “to pilot participatory approaches in farm-level irrigation modernization,” according to a World Bank statement. “The grant includes a new approach to the delivery of services by the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation based on working with farmer's groups on participatory planning and project implementation,” the statement said. Egypt's agricultural sector employs 30 percent of its workforce and supports 55 percent of the population, according to World Bank statistics. Japan's Ambassador to Egypt Norihiro Okuda said, “Japan will continue to be active in the area of water and agriculture because the importance of these sectors remains unchanged even after the revolution. Agriculture remains the largest industry in Egypt and therefore the largest employer,” he added. The grant aims to pilot participatory demand driven approaches for modernizing farm-level irrigation for around 5,000 small-scale farmers in selected command areas of Mahmoudia, Manaifa and Meet Yazid, located in the Nile Delta. Part of Egypt's “Strategy of Sustainable Agricultural Development 2030,” this is the first phase of a longer-term national program to modernize irrigation on 5 million feddans. The grand allows “farmers to participate directly in the design and implementation of improvements of farm level irrigation technology on approximately 7,000 feddans of farmland," said A. David Craig, country director for Egypt, Yemen and Djibouti. The program will allow farmers to make sure services are tailored to their needs and it will create an opportunity for local businesses to participate in the delivery of these services. “This grant promises to have a significant influence on the approach that is used in farm level irrigation service delivery, on the successful implementation of all of the government and donor programs to improve on-farm irrigation, and on helping Egypt reach its ultimate goal of improving irrigation on 5 million feddan,” said Sidi Boubacar, the World Bank Head of Office. –Daily News Egypt Okuda said, “The government of Japan is keen to help Egypt in its transition to democracy and attaches a particular emphasis on private sector job creation."
