site.btaBulgaria and Palestine Discuss Opportunities for Cooperation in Agriculture

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food Alexander Yotsev met with Adham Zainaldin, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of Palestine in the Republic of Bulgaria on Friday. At the meeting, the possibilities for cooperation in the field of agriculture were discussed, with an emphasis on the need to make joint efforts to ensure food security. 

The participants in the meeting pointed out that all prerequisites for a successful exchange of goods, personnel, good practices and technologies were in place, and confirmed that efforts will be made to expand direct contacts. 

On the Palestinian side, the need to create a mechanism for the practical implementation of the signed 2012 Protocol on Cooperation in the Field of Agriculture and Forestry between the Ministries of Agriculture of the two countries was highlighted. The importance of further specifying the spheres of activity in which the Protocol is applicable was also noted, and a proposal was presented for consideration at the expert level. On the Palestinian side, priority is being given to reducing the impact of the greenhouse effect, rationalizing water sources, improving the harvest of agricultural crops, increasing the qualifications of those employed in agriculture.

Deputy Minister Yotsev expressed satisfaction with the practical focus of the dialogue and said that all concrete ideas will be considered, including possible projects with third countries, stressing the importance of both ensuring food security and focusing on activities related to with the food independence of each country. In this context, he pointed out that Bulgaria, as an agricultural producer, is an important partner of the global community in terms of UN programmes to overcome the problem of hunger. 

Deputy Minister Yotsev recalled that arable land globally is decreasing, while the population is growing, a technologically oriented approach is needed in the use of resources both in production and in processing, and in this regard Bulgaria can offer a successful partnership in line with agricultural science. The Deputy Minister added that a possible area of cooperation is related to the management of food waste. Successful practices can also be exchanged in the field of organic production, Yotsev also pointed out.