Agriculture: The opening of the Cairo International Dates Festival at the Orman Park in Giza, with the participation of more than 50 exhibitors
On behalf of Mr. Al-Qusayr, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Dr. Alaa Azouz, Head of the Agricultural Extension Sector, accompanied by Ambassador Mohamed Al-Rabie, Secretary General of the Council of Arab Economic Unity, Dr. Hussein Mansour, Chairman of the National Food Safety Authority, Dr. Ahmed Sweiden, Executive Director of the Arab Federation of Dates, and Major General Hafez Mahmoud Hassan, Assistant Minister of Trade and Industry, and Dr. Ashraf El-Far, Secretary General of the Arab Federation of Dates, Cairo International Dates Festival, at the Orman Botanical Garden in Giza.
Dr. Alaa Azouz, head of the agricultural extension sector, confirmed that the ministry seeks to achieve a comprehensive renaissance for the palm and dates sector based on the rapid and sustainable development of systems for producing, collecting, packing, processing and exporting dates, as well as benefiting from by-products and date palm waste, in a way that leads to an increase in national income and benefits investors and manufacturers. And merchants, in particular, small farmers and the most needy groups.
The head of the agricultural extension sector indicated that Egypt is considered the first in the world in the production of dates, and explained that the Egyptian state is interested in expanding the cultivation of date palms and paying attention to reaching the summit in this crop in terms and quality, referring to the initiative launched by President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi to promote date palm cultivation and promote the production of dates. In Egypt, and increasing investments in this important sector, and the efforts made by the Egyptian state to combat the red palm weevil, to preserve this national wealth.
In his speech, Major General Hafez Mahmoud Hassan, Assistant Minister of Trade and Industry, reviewed the ministry's achievements in developing the dates sector in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, FAO, UNIDO, and the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation.
The festival's activities include various artistic and entertainment events, photographic exhibitions, cultural competitions, educational workshops for carving and drawing on papers, as well as artistic performances by some artists that express the general environment of the dates producing governorates.
The Ministry of Agriculture has taken a number of precautionary measures to prevent the Corona virus, support all wings with disinfectants, provide heat detectors at the entrances to the park, and stress the wearing of protective masks, for all those who frequent the park.
The First Cairo Festival for Dates and Natural Products will be held during the period from 1-5 April 2021, with the participation of more than 50 exhibitors, from companies specializing in the fields of date production, date palm seedlings, farmers, manufacturers, exporters and marketers, as well as pest control companies, agricultural machinery and equipment, in the Orman Botanical Garden. In Giza, within the framework of the directives of the Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Mr. Al-Qusayr, to support and develop this important sector, and to achieve added value in the service of the national economy.