The 36th Session of the FAO Regional Conference for the Near East kicked off on Monday in the capital of Iraq, Baghdad, with the participation of Syria
The discussions during the two-day- conference deal with topics of food security and healthy diets for all for better nutrition and a better life, building resilient rural communities, and green recovery measures
Agriculture and Agrarian Reform Minister, Eng. Muhammad Hassan Qatana, head of the Syrian delegation, discussed with his Iraqi counterpart, Eng. Muhammad Karim al-Khafaji, a mechanism for developing and strengthening cooperation relations between both countries in domains of agricultural scientific research, plant and animal production, animal health and fisheries
Minister Qatana called for granting Syrian agricultural products, especially citrus fruits, some preferential advantages, which would allow them to compete more in the Iraqi market, pointing out that despite the Syrian government’s facilities in this regard, such as the cancellation of tariffs and the reduction of the indicative price of the shipment of citrus, the export quantities to Iraq have decreased significantly between the current year and the previous year
He stressed the need for coordination between the two countries to find solutions to the problems facing the exchange of agricultural products.
Al-Khafaji stressed that the continuation of efforts with the Iraqi Border Ports Authority to make a decision on Syrian agricultural exports and conduct a study of wholesale markets and the difficulties that hinder the arrival of Syrian product to the Iraqi market
Qatana also met the Iraqi Minister of Trade, Dr. Alaa Ahmed al-Jubouri, who pointed out to the necessity of holding an exhibition of Syrian products in Mosul in order to stimulate the entry of Syrian goods in all its forms into the Iraqi market
Qatana discussed with his Lebanese counterpart, Abbas Hajj Hassan, he development of cooperation between the two countries and bilateral agreements in the field of reforestation of the Eastern Syrian-Lebanese mountain range
The Lebanese minister pointed out the importance of joint cooperation in the field of exchanging agricultural products, facilitating their marketing mechanisms and addressing the problems facing the shipment of agricultural products, calling for holding an agricultural meeting in Damascus that includes Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan