Photo: ©FAO

Bolu, Turkey – An inception workshop for the “Developing an Agro-Ecology Management System by Promoting Ecosystem-Oriented Food Production” project was organized today by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the participation of national and international experts and ministry technical experts in Bolu. The project will be carried out in cooperation with FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, and will be financed by the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

The workshop was opened by Aysegul Selisik, Assistant FAO Representative for Turkey, who began her speech by expressing her gratitude to the General Directorate of Agricultural Reform for their cooperation and support in the preparation of the project proposal. She continued:

“The contribution of the ecosystem-oriented agricultural production approach to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals cannot be ignored. With this project, while ensuring the effective and sustainable use of natural resources, we will be able to integrate the three dimensions of sustainability – social, economic and environmental – and turn ecosystem-oriented agricultural practices into an exemplary model both in our country and in the wider region.”

Selisik added, “Through this process, we will also increase clean food production and access the capacities of those who make their living from agriculture, especially family farmers and local people, by ensuring the quality of water and soil and contributing to their safe supply to meet present and future needs.”

The workshop was attended by Ali Kilic Ozbek, Head of the Department of Agricultural Environment and Protection of Natural Resources of the General Directorate of Agricultural Reform; Izzet Murat, Bolu Provincial Director of Agriculture and Forestry; Fazıl Dusunceli, Lead Technical Officer of the Project; Erdogan Ozevren and Hakki Emrah Erdogan, FAO-GEF project team members; and representatives of Bolu-related institutions and stakeholders.

The project is the first GEF-supported initiative of the General Directorate of Agricultural Reform under the “Creating an Ecosystem-Oriented Food Production Model” item of the Climate Change and Agriculture Final Declaration, announced by Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli at a previous workshop held on 11 January 2022.

Izzet Murat, Provincial Director of Agriculture and Forestry, provided more details: “Within the scope of the project, an ecosystem-oriented agricultural production model will be built on an area of approximately 50 000 decares in our province. Building an exemplary production model in our local environment will help boost our agricultural cooperation with Central Asian countries. At the same time, the project will strengthen small-scale agricultural enterprises, help prevent pollution of soil and water resources, and provide grants for fertilizer distribution machines and manure pit construction. In addition to a focus on environmentally sensitive production through the application of an agro-ecological production model, the project will also contribute significantly to the brand value of our province”.

The workshop continued with presentations by technical experts and exchanges on project activities.