Bilateral Meeting with H.E. François Sergio Hajarison, Minister for Agriculture and Livestock of the Republic of Madagascar

Rome - The FAO Director-General met with H.E. ​François Sergio Hajarison, Minister​ for Agriculture and Livestock of the Republic of Madagascar on the margins of the 44th Session of the FAO Ministerial Conference at FAO headquarters. 

The Director-General welcomed the Minister and reaffirmed FAO’s continued support to Madagascar. The Director-Genera also referred to the timeliness of the Ministerial Meeting on SIDS, LDCs and LLDCs held on the sidelines of the FAO Ministerial Conference as the outcomes of the high-level event informed the discussions at the Conference. 

The Minister thanked the Director-General for the warm welcome and expressed appreciation for the strong collaboration between Madagascar and FAO, and reiterated the government's commitment to continue to support the work of FAO. He informed that the President prioritized agriculture, and efforts were channeled towards increasing the production of rice as a staple food of Madagascar. To this end, the government had imported quality seeds from China to ensure farmers had access to quality seeds with the intention to conserve and develop them to produce different varieties of rice. 

In this regard the Minister requested FAO’s assistance in ensuring increased production through mechanization, as well as to further develop the aquaculture sector. The Minister also indicated that they would present their investment plan during the Hand-in-Hand Investment Forum in October during the World Food Forum, with the aim of attracting investments to reduce high poverty levels in the country through job creation, working together with the private sector. Madagascar also looked forward to increasing collaboration with FAO through other flagship initiatives. 

The Director-General welcomed and commended the government's efforts and indicated that FAO could also extend support through the African Development Bank and the World Bank as development partners. He also stressed the importance of strengthening aquaculture in Madagascar, and referred to his upcoming visit to Madagascar during; which he looked forward to viewing firsthand relevant projects that required access to funding, as well as to meeting with smallholder farmers to explore ways to improve the cash crops production in Madagascar.