3 - 9 May 2001
Issue No.532
|
Al-Ahram Weekly On-line 3 - 9 May 2001 Issue No.532 |
||
| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 | Current issue | Previous issue | Site map | ||
Ensuring food security
A DELEGATION of senior Australian officials and businessmen headed by Peter Beattie, the Australian trade minister and prime minister of the State of Queensland, visited Egypt early this week to explore fields of cooperation between the two countries.
The delegation comprised major representatives of live cattle and beef exporters, as well as companies with extensive agribusiness expertise.
During a meeting with Ahmed El-Guweili, secretary-general of the Council of the Arab Economic Unity, Beattie said Australia is watching with great interest the development of an Arab Free Trade Area. "The aim is to discover fields of mutual benefit to Australia and the countries in the region, especially Egypt," Beattie said.
With its broad experience in the field of livestock and agribusiness, Australia will have a substantial role to play in the region in the next 25 years, according to El-Guweili. "Countries of the Middle East, including Egypt, will face tremendous food and water challenges in the new millennium. Billions can be invested in the fields of agriculture, food processing and cattle raising in these countries and this is where Australia can step in as a real partner," said El-Guweili.
El-Guweili pointed out several problems suffered by the region's countries -- uncontrolled demographic growth, scarcity of natural resources, especially water, and lack of technology. "The total population of the region was 385 million in 1995 and is expected to reach 582 million by 2015 at a growth rate of 2.5 per cent annually, with Egypt recording an increase of 1.9 per cent every year," he said
Meanwhile, 14 Middle Eastern countries are categorised as water-scarce, with Egypt anticipated to join the list in 2025.
Moreover, the region is a food-deficit one, with the demand for food expected to expand at a higher rate than the supply.
"The region's reliance on imports of food is expected to rise, requiring the expansion of foreign resources and investment," said El-Guweili. He added that Australia can play a major role in exporting food and agricultural products, as well as know-how, to increase the food supply in Egypt and other countries in the area.
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
 |
|
|||||||||||||||||
| ARCHIVES Letter from the Editor Editorial Board Subscription Advertise! |
WEEKLY ONLINE: www.ahram.org.eg/weekly Updated every Saturday at 11.00 GMT, 2pm local time weeklyweb@ahram.org.eg |
 Al-Ahram Organisation |
Recommend this page