Cairo, Egypt - The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Egypt and the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (MALR) are holding today the validation workshop to present the results of the technical audit for the 43 million USD project on “On-farm irrigation development project” “OFIDP” in Cairo to improve on-farm irrigation. The project was implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, and it was co-financed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Fund For International development (OFID) and the Government of Egypt (GoE).

The objective of the workshop is to assess the planning, technical design and implementation of the interventions carried out under the OFIDP, including verification of design standards, norms, and specifications, construction quality and workmanship, physical status and functionality of the completed work, in addition to providing guidance to the Egyptian government on future planning for similar projects.

“The Project Management Unit (PMU) of FIMP has implemented around 245 thousands feddans in all OFIDP, and it is expected that the implementation level will reach about 100 thousands feddans annually, as part of the implementation mechanism to achieve the 4.5 million feddans targeted within the agricultural development strategy. Such a target requires preparing a comprehensive cooperation protocol between the Ministries of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Water Resources and irrigation, and Renewable energy,” said Dr. Mohamed Soliman, president of the Agricultural Research Centre.

“This project is in line with the overall orientation of FAO and its partners to increase innovation, investment and policy improvement in the water sector, especially in a context where water scarcity hinders rural livelihoods, forcing people to migrate from rural to urban areas. Therefore, it is important to carry out a new generation of policies and investments, and to hold inter-ministerial coordination on the compatibility between water, food and trade policies, along with developing mechanisms to reward farmers for their efficient use of water and soil, “ said Hussein Gadain, FAO Representative.

“It is in our interest to have continuous cooperation with the Egyptian government, especially in the field of irrigation and agriculture. The nature of this cooperation will be shaped based on what will be presented by FAO in the technical audit report, “ said Khaled Al-Zayer, Representative of OFID.

“Recommendations stemming from this assessment will assist the Government of Egypt (GoE) in determining how to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of future similar agricultural water management investments. Such information will be critical in the development of future investment strategies and policies and will contribute towards more sustainable and successful investments in agricultural water management by the GoE,” said Maher Salman, Technical Officer- Land and Water Division in FAO-HQ.

It is worth noting that the project worked on improving equity in the distribution of quality water to farmers; improving the speed and efficiency of water conveyance, which will lower labour and pumping costs; and enhancing farmer knowledge and awareness of innovative irrigation technology and associated cropping practices. An increase in agricultural profitability among farmers through such benefits could help reduce poverty, with many of the rural poor depending on agriculture as their primary income sources.

Under this project, farm-level irrigation has been developed in 63 000 feddans, with an 8 000 feddans extra to the target, in the governorates of Beheira, Kafr El Sheikh, El Dakahlia, El Sharkia, Bani-Swif, El-Menia, Assiut, Sohag, Quena, Luxor, said Dr. Hassan Shams El Din, Director of the FIMP’s PMU.

The project consists of two components: (i) Farm-Level Irrigation Modernization in the above mentioned areas, where branch canals and meskas have been improved; and (ii) Farm-Level Technology Modernization, which aimed to enhance farmer knowledge of efficient on-farm irrigation methods and crop production technologies.