Rabat – Head of Government Aziz Akhannouch chaired a meeting on Thursday in Rabat with stakeholders from agricultural production sectors, during which industry professionals presented priority measures aimed at promoting the agriculture sector and ensuring market supply.
This meeting comes in preparation for the launch of the 2024-2025 agricultural campaign, following five consecutive years of drought, which have affected all components of the sector, according to a statement from the Department of the Head of Government.
The proposed measures, which are expected to help reduce agricultural product prices, focus on protecting and rebuilding livestock resources and strengthening the resilience of the agricultural sector in the face of an unfavorable global context marked by climate change and water scarcity.
The meeting provided an opportunity to discuss various mechanisms that could contribute to achieving the desired balance in livestock sectors, such as dairy, red meat, and poultry, as well as plant-base
d sectors like olive, citrus, date palm, legumes, early vegetables, sugar crops, rice, seeds, and cereals.
During the meeting, Akhannouch affirmed that the government will strengthen its support for professionals in the various agricultural sectors to improve their performance through optimal management of inputs and production factors.
He added that the government, following the High Royal Directives, will continue to mobilize structural investments aimed at enhancing the agricultural sector’s ability to adapt to the effects of drought and take a series of measures to gradually restore balance in productive sectors.
The government will ensure the monitoring of the implementation of various urgent measures that can contribute to reducing the prices of agricultural products, in order to preserve citizens’ purchasing power. It will also ensure the continuous and sufficient supply of national markets.
In May 2023, the government signed a set of 19 next-generation program contracts for the development and mod
ernization of agricultural production sectors, as part of the implementation of the Generation Green strategy, with a total cost of more than 110 billion dirhams over 10 years, of which more than 42 billion dirhams are in the form of state contributions through the Agricultural Development Fund.
Participants in this meeting included the Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development, and Water and Forests, Mohamed Sadiki; the Minister Delegate to the Minister of Economy and Finance in charge of the Budget, Fouzi Lekjaa; the General Treasurer of the Kingdom, Noureddine Bensouda; the Director of State Domains, Mohamed El Kharmoudi; the Director-General of the Customs and Indirect Taxes Administration, Abdellatif Amrani; the Chairman of the Board of Crédit Agricole du Maroc, Mohamed Fikrat; the Director-General of the National Food Safety Office, Abdallah Janati; as well as representatives from agricultural sectors and industry professionals.
Source: Agence Marocaine De Presse