Sisi calls for optimising economic efficiency, competitiveness of agricultural production

CAIRO – Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi has called for integrating the efforts and plans of various sectors in the field of agricultural production in order to achieve the maximum possible productive and economic efficiency of the state’s resources available in this sector.

The president’s call came during his meeting on Monday with Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouli, Agriculture Minister el-Sayed al-Quseir, and Trade and Industry Minister Nevine Gamea, Presidency Spokesman Ambassador Bassam Radi said. The meeting, he added, was devoted to following up on the system of Egyptian agricultural exports.

During the meeting, the president noted that such an approach aims to enhance the country’s food security in terms of strategic crops in addition to keeping up the competitiveness of Egyptian agricultural products locally and internationally.

The approach also links agricultural production with associated industries and generates more direct and indirect job opportunities in many specialisations, the president added.

The meeting featured a review of the status of Egyptian agricultural exports which include 350 diverse agricultural products that are exported to more than 150 countries around the world, with Arab and European countries in the foremost, Spokesman Radi said.

Egyptian agricultural exports, the review unveiled, registered an unprecedented upturn through the past year, with the size of such products reaching nearly 5.6 tonnes worth $3 billion, the spokesman said.

The review also indicated that in addition to the increase in Egyptian exports of processes and packed agricultural products, Egypt has become the world’s largest exporter of citruses, Spokesman Radi added.

In a presentation he gave during the meeting, the agriculture minister outlined the scene of the current wheat harvest season in light of the measures taken by the state to enhance the productivity of the wheat crop by increasing the cultivated areas by about 250,000 feddans, Spokesman Radi said.

This comes in complementation with the national project for grain silos, which enhances the state’s capacity for grain strategic storage, the agriculture minister said, adding that raising wheat delivery prices and the introduction of exceptional incentives aim to maximise the material and economic returns for wheat growers and farmers.