Iran can contribute to sustainable agriculture development: Minister

Pointing to the close cooperation between Iran and the Netherlands in the drought management conference last month, Mahmoud Hojjati said that Iran is ready to help the international community and regional countries promote the food security and sustainable development in agriculture sector.

Speaking at the 40th Session of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Conference in Rome on Monday, Hojjati added that climate change and geographical-related concerns, particularly the droughts in recent decades, made Iran determined to define and implement new agricultural strategies, IRNA reported.

In line with the strategies, over 660,000 hectares of modern irrigation systems have been installed across the country over the past four years, according to the Minister.

With regard to water-based resources, much attention has been given to water spreading, water shedding management, the balance between livestock number and grazing capacity (BLGC), forest protection and development of medical herbs production as an alternative way to make money, he added.

“As the representative of a country that has taken various steps in this regard, I would like to ask the international community to pay particular attention to promoting international consultation and cooperation for developing new technologies related to water and drought,” Hojjati said.

The 40th Session of FAO Conference is taking place in Rome on July 3-8, during which the council’s members as well as the head of the FAO independent council ICC will be chosen.

The international conference of FAO is the main decision making meeting of the organization which is held biannually, attended by ministers of agriculture and some presidents or other officials of the 194 state members.