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CropLife AME and CropLife Egypt’s workshop on the transition towards sustainable food production in Egypt

On 3 October, CropLife Africa Middle East & CropLife Egypt co-hosted a workshop on ‘Food Security and Transition Towards Sustainable Food Production in Egypt: The Need for an African Localized Green Transition’, with actors across the food value chain.

CropLife AME was honoured to have as guest speaker Dr. Mohamed Abdel Megeed, Chairman of Agricultural Pesticide Committee (APC) Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Egypt, who opened the workshop.

During the workshop, diverse Egyptian stakeholders, from the public and private sector involved in the food value chain, exchanged insights on tackling the mounting pressures on food production and trade in Egypt, partly attributed to the direct and indirect impacts of the EU Green Deal, while simultaneously promoting sustainable agriculture practices. Among the concerns raised by Egyptian growers, the most significant one was the constant reduction of their toolbox of viable solutions available to them; “we face difficulties as we have less and less solutions available to fight pests, and we are not provided with viable alternatives, making it more and more difficult to grow foods, therefore impacting our revenue stream and livelihoods”.

In light of these challenges, CropLife Africa Middle East noted being in favor of the EU Green Deal’s objectives; however, the implementation should be tailored to a country’s specificities. CropLife Africa Middle East calls for an Africa localized green transition while emphasizing the importance of maintaining a safe and secure supply of food which should be non-negotiable and which can be achieved by recognizing the role of plant science tools, including crop protection products and plant biotechnology, in sustainable agriculture and food safety.
Please see below for some additional key takeaway messages of the workshop:

  • To ensure food security while transitioning towards sustainable food production in Egypt, an Africa localized green transition is needed
  • More research and data are needed to fully understand the impact of sustainability policies on food security in Egypt and in the region
  • Stakeholders across the food value chain have an opportunity to voice their perspectives and contribute to the discussion
  • Public-private partnerships are essential, and CropLife Africa Middle East encourages collaboration between governments and agri-food actors to implement strong stewardship measures and ensure the safe use of pesticides
  • The industry requires a supportive environment and enabling regulatory frameworks to innovate and find suitable alternatives to conventional pesticides, such as biologicals.
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Meeting with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Syndicate of Agricultural Materials Traders and Producers Association (AMATPA) in Jordan

In September, CL AME Regional Director for MENA region was in Amman, Jordan, in order to meet with the Secretariat of the General Authority in the Ministry of Agriculture, the Administrative Board, and the member companies of the Syndicate of Agricultural Materials Traders and Producers Association (AMATPA) in Jordan, in order to discuss the challenges in the field of agriculture and the action plan for the coming months. This follows the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Agriculture and AMATPA association earlier this year.

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Croplife AME meeting with CropLife Nigeria’s Board and members

In September, CL AME colleagues – Stella and Sylvain – were in Nigeria to notably:

  • Meet with CropLife Nigeria’s Board and members, and to exchange on the implementation of CropLife Nigeria’s annual workplan and other challenges;
  • Meet and discuss with federal authorities involved in pesticides management in Nigeria on various regulatory, stewardships and ACF issues;
  • Strengthen the collaboration with ECOWAS commission and exchange about the regional harmonization of pesticides management in West Africa;
  • Meet and discuss with other stakeholders to implement CL A ME’s stewardship, regulatory and anti-counterfeiting activities in Nigeria.