Vice Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture Eng. Mansour Al-Mushaiti has said the Kingdom continues to support the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) efforts to achieve food and water security, and combat hunger and poverty everywhere.
Delivering a speech today at the 43rd session of FAO Conference to discuss food and agricultural issues in light of the challenges posed by water scarcity, as well as water management, with the aim of achieving food security and comprehensive support for flexible and efficient food production, Al-Mushaiti said that the Agricultural Development Fund has adopted lending policies to support modern technologies, with lending that exceeds 70% of the capital cost of agricultural projects, stressing that the lending rate jumped from SAR500 million in 2015 to SAR7 billion in 2022.
He added that the agricultural sector in the Kingdom witnessed growing investments and achieved a remarkable development that is reflected in its SAR100 billion contribution to the economy in 2022, the highest contribution in the sector’s history. The Kingdom, he said, achieved high rates of self-sufficiency in many agricultural crops, especially those that rely on modern technology, which could ensure an integrated water management that reduced consumption of water for agriculture from 86% to less than 70%.
Al-Mushaiti met with President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development Dr. Alvaro Lario, on the sidelines of the conference, with whom he discussed cooperation and ways to strengthen it, in accordance with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.
Source: Saudi Press Agency