Representatives from Egypt's Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation and the German Development Agency (GIZ) have met to inspect the Agricultural Extension Center's activities in Minya governorate. The centre falls under the Agricultural Innovation Project (AIP) set up by GIZ. The meeting was attended by: Ismail Radwan, Undersecretary at Egypt's Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation; Uwe Gehlen, Head of GIZ in Egypt; Alexander Solyga, Country Director at GIZ Egypt; and Myriam Fernando, Head of the Agricultural Innovation Project at GIZ Egypt. The meeting comes after a protocol of cooperation was signed between the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation and GIZ Egypt in March 2021. The meeting aimed to find further ways of cooperation focused on agricultural innovation between Egyptian and German partners. During the visit, the representatives attended a rural awareness theatre play, where rural development messages were communicated in a comedic manner, featuring local representatives from the communities. They also met with graduates of the Training of Trainers programme, which was implemented in collaboration with the Sekem company. The programme's objective is to prepare specialised trainers in providing technical support services for organic farming and the production of safe, high-quality products, as well as supporting growth in Minya. Radwan highlighted the importance of the project's work in increasing the income of small-scale agriculture in Upper Egypt. He said, "We support and encourage the adoption of agricultural innovation through upgrading value chains and improving the production cycle through to market distribution at both local and international markets." Gehlen said, "The Egyptian-German cooperation extends across several fields, and for the agricultural sector, we are keen to transfer German technical expertise in agriculture innovation." He said, "These knowledge transfers will serve as sustainable elements of change across communities." For his part, Solyga said, "We are honoured to implement urban development work on behalf of the German Government and in collaboration with the Egyptian government." He added, "The Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation and Minya Governorate continue to extend their strong support and dedication to implement these activities and to see the impact of our joint sustainable development work in the agriculture sector." The AIP aims to increase the income of 10,000 smallholder farmers in Upper Egypt through the horticulture sector by improving practices in the production stage. It also aims to increase value addition at the farm level, and solve challenges in marketing for both international and domestic trade, through collaborations and partnership between the private and public sectors.
