Bilateral meeting with H.E. Alaa Farouk, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation of the Arab Republic of Egypt

Bari - The FAO Director-General, Dr QU Dongyu, met with His Excellency Alaa Farouk, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation of the Arab Republic of Egypt on the sidelines of the International Centre for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (CIHEAM) High Level Conferrnce in Support of the Plant Health Strategy in the NENA Region.

The Director-General commended the Minister for the excellent and longstanding collaboration, and in particular for hosting over many years the FAO Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa (RNE) in Cairo. The Director-General also noted that the 3rd Global FAOR Working Conference would be held in Cairo, organized by RNE, in December 2025, and looked forward to Egypt’s support in that regard.

The Minister commended the Director-General for his leadership and for the excellent collaboration between the country and the Organization, and assured the Director-General of Egypt’s full support for the global working conference in December, as well as for the work of the Organization as a whole.

The Minister highlighted the importance of working effectively with FAO to accelerate agricultural and rural development, transform the country’s agrifood system, particularly regarding support for small farmers, the development of rural women, and youth.

The Minister also emphasized the importance of working with the private sector in Egypt, and African countries, to enhance trade exchange and encourage investments to achieve food security for the continent, considering the measures taken by the government to increase investment in climate and agriculture. Finally, the Minister informed that Egypt was expanding cultivated land to boost agricultural exports.

The Director-General reaffirmed FAO’s commitment to working with all partners, especially across the African continent, and referred to the World Food Forum’s Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum as an important platform to attract investments to accelerate agrifood systems transformation.

The pair agreed to continue to strengthen the excellent collaboration between FAO and Egypt, including in support of the Plant Health Strategy in the NENA Region, highlighting the importance of plant health for food security and the Four Betters.