By: Amira Sayed For thousands of years, agriculture played a vital role in the lives of the ancient Egyptians who managed to turn the deserts round them into green fields. They grew different types of crops, making the country home to a wide range of flora, including aromatic and medicinal plants that were used to cure diverse ills. Bearing in mind the current, regrettable state of this forgotten wealth, it seems that the pharaohs were more aware than we are of the importance of these plants as a promising source of income. Many countries, particularly India and China, rely on these precious plants to produce perfumes, medicines and cosmetics, making big profits. Though Egypt's deserts, especially in Sinai and the southern Red Sea governorate, contain areas in which unique types of aromatic plants grow such as chamomile and the fragrant Egyptian Jasmine, in addition to medicinal plants, these plants are to be found in no more than 8.0 per cent of the country's cultivated land. According to official statistics, these plants are exported in their raw form and they bring in a revenue of only $80 million annually. In the 1950s and 1960s, Egypt was a leading exporter of perfumes to the Arab world, East Asia and East Europe. But because the importance of these plants was overlooked, Egypt has become an importer of perfume, rather than an exporter. "Hopes are pinned on these plants pushing our economy forward. They are a treasure and the government should bear its responsibility and support farmers to help boost this sector," Gamal Seyam, Professor of Agricultural Economy at Cairo University, told The Egyptian Gazette. Seyam said, "Egypt enjoys a strategic location and a unique environment which make its deserts rich in numerous kinds of aromatic and medicinal plants that grow in the wild. Other kinds are cultivated by farmers. "The high price of fertilizers and pesticides is one of the hurdles facing farmers. Also, the hefty cost of extracting fragrance and producing medicines from these plants has overburdened the exporters financially, further hampering the progress of this vital sector." Minya Governorate in Upper Egypt is the governorate that produces the most aromatic and medicinal herbs. It is followed by Beni Suef, Fayoum and Assiut. The Saint Catherine's area, in South Sinai, in particular, is very fertile and is home to around one hundred medicinal plants. As part of the country's efforts to breathe new life into this sector, the government announced a plan to establish a centre for these plants in Beni Suef Governorate. There are around 11,000 feddans of agricultural land in Beni Suef, with 6000 feddans cultivated in aromatic and medicinal plants including basil, chamomile and mint. The government's plan is to increase this area. Seyam pointed out that the financial exploitation of farmers by brokers and exporters was another obstacle. "Sometimes there are brokers who buy these plants from farmers cheaply and sell them to exporters at a higher price. That is how farmers fall prey to greedy merchants." Economic Expert Mohamed Mursi said that these plants were part of a comprehensive economic project. "The government should deal with every aspect of this. We should not only export these plants, we should also use them to manufacture products. This can open the door to more industries," Mursi told the Gazette. Now, many countries worldwide are opting for these herbs as alternatives to chemical ingredients, and this will open up new markets for Egypt's plants. "There should be support for scientific research to introduce more types of plant and produce more perfumery," he said.
