Egyptian Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Alaa Farouk, has met with his counterparts from Senegal and Somalia to discuss enhanced agricultural cooperation. The meetings took place on the sidelines of the African Union's Extraordinary Summit on Agricultural Development, currently being held in Kampala, Uganda. Farouk met with Senegal's Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty, and Animal Resources, Mabouba Diagne, and both ministers affirmed the strong historical ties between their countries and expressed their desire to deepen collaboration, particularly in the agricultural sector. They agreed that this cooperation should include the sharing of expertise in sustainable agriculture, training opportunities, the development of modern agricultural technologies, and the promotion of agricultural research and digital transformation. They also discussed increasing trade in agricultural products and removing existing obstacles. The Senegalese delegation requested Egypt's support in developing new varieties of strategic crops such as wheat, maize, and rice. They also proposed that Egypt assist in establishing a centre of excellence for seed production in Senegal. Furthermore, Senegal is seeking Egypt's expertise in building grain storage facilities, with a possible tripartite collaboration involving Egypt, Senegal, and the African Development Bank. Senegal also expressed interest in importing nitrogenous fertilizers from Egypt. It was agreed that a technical meeting would be arranged to develop specific areas of cooperation, along with communication with Egyptian authorities to ensure Senegal's fertilizer needs are met. Additionally, the Senegalese side will send a technical delegation to Egypt to learn about modern technologies and laboratory equipment and to see the production of strategic crop seeds. Farouk also met with Mohamed Abdi Hayir, Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation of the Federal Republic of Somalia, to discuss further agricultural collaboration. The ministers discussed joint research projects focused on climate change and its effects on agriculture, as well as digital transformation, livestock production, and the improvement of animal breeds. They also considered the development of agricultural extension services. Both ministers stressed the importance of sharing expertise. Somalia is seeking to benefit from Egypt's experience in water resource management, improving crop yields, and pest and disease control. The potential deployment of Egyptian agricultural experts to Somalia to provide technical support to farmers, along with training programs for Somali farmers and specialists at the Egyptian International Centre for Agriculture in Cairo were discussed. The ministers also addressed ways to increase the flow of agricultural products between the two countries and to enhance trade opportunities. They agreed to hold a joint technical meeting to discuss these matters and to update the existing memorandums of understanding to activate this collaboration in the near future. The meetings were attended by the Egyptian Ambassador to Uganda, Monzer Selim; the Head of the Agricultural Research Centre, Adel Abdelazim; and the Head of Foreign Agricultural Relations, Saad Moussa. Farouk is attending the African Union summit in Kampala, representing the President of Egypt, Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi, at the summit, which is being held from 9-11 January.
