Boosting Private-Public Sector Cooperation to Strengthen Egypt's Food Security

The high-level forum is being organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation. It will bring together policy-makers, regional and international agribusiness representatives, investors and representatives of international financial institutions to deliberate on the role that the private sector, bolstered by cooperation with the public sector, can play in addressing Egypt?s food security challenges.

How can increasing the level of cooperation between the public and private sectors contribute to improving efficiency in Egypt’s agricultural sector and reducing the country’s food trade deficit?

Can this important objective be achieved through a sustainable, long-term approach?

These questions will be the main focus of the high-level, multi-stakeholder forum, “Private Sector for Food Security: Improving the Investment Climate in Egypt’s Agribusiness Sector”, which will take place in Cairo on 27 June 2013.

The high-level forum is being organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), in collaboration with the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation. It will bring together policy-makers, regional and international agribusiness representatives, investors and representatives of international financial institutions to deliberate on the role that the private sector, bolstered by cooperation with the public sector, can play in addressing Egypt’s food security challenges.

WHY
FAO and the EBRD are convinced that:

The private sector, when properly supported by the public sector, can have a significant impact on both competitiveness and efficiency in the agribusiness sector;

Challenges in food production are considerable in Egypt: most food losses occur during the processing, handling, cold chains and port handling stages of production, threatening food security and food safety in the country;

Increasing investment in the agribusiness sector, through developing new instruments to facilitate access to credit and reviewing existing import and trade policies, could both reduce waste and significantly decrease Egypt’s grain import costs.

WHO
Speakers include

H. E. Ahmed Mahmoud Ali El-Gizawy, Egypt’s Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation,

Mr. Philip ter Woort, Director, Head of Egypt Office, EBRD,

Gilles Mettetal, Director, Agribusiness, EBRD, CEOs from local and international agribusiness companies and representatives of business associations.

WHERE
Cairo Marriott Hotel, Zamalek - 16 Saray El Gezira Street WHEN

27 June 2013, from 08.30 to 17.00.

PRESS CONFERENCE

A press conference will be held on 27 June at 10.00 in the Salon Vert.

Moderator

Mr. Jonathan Charles, Director, Communications, EBRD

Participants

Prof. Dr H. E. Ahmed Mahmoud Ali El-Gizawy, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Egypt

Mr. Abdessalam Ould Ahmed, Assistant Director General and Regional Representative for the Near East, FAO

Mr. Philip ter Woort, Director, Head of Egypt Office, EBRD

Gilles Mettetal, Director, Agribusiness, EBRD

26/06/2013