The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) signed an agreement to implement the project of the sustainable production and use of natural agricultural resources in Ma’an Governorate, through a grant provided by the Italian government, amounting to about 990 thousand euros.

The agreement was signed by the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Nasser Al-Shraideh, the Minister of Agriculture, Eng. Khaled Al-Hanaifat, and the representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Jordan, Eng. Nabil Assaf.

According to a ministry press release, today, Tuesday, the Minister of Planning said that a total of 120 families (660 people) will benefit from this two-year initiative, as the project will include activities to provide rainwater harvesting systems and provide food processing equipment, in addition to a capacity building program to provide beneficiaries with skills. needed to maximize the use of natural agricultural resources and thus enhance their livelihoods, which will contribute to improving food security, income opportunities and empowering rural local communities.

He stressed that the project is one of the projects that aligns with the government’s work priorities, as it aims to support the local community in Ma’an Governorate with sustainable economic mechanisms to use the natural agricultural resources available in the governorate, by enabling the target groups to conduct water harvesting to produce vegetables and herbs and reuse reclaimed water to produce Forage crops to feed local livestock.

Al-Shraideh added that Jordan is working to achieve sustainable development goals that include achieving food security for all, stressing that the government, aware of the importance of food security, launched in the middle of this year the National Food Security Strategy 2021-2030 based on royal directives.

The Minister of Planning expressed the government’s thanks and appreciation to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), as the organization’s projects in Jordan are of qualitative added value that includes technology transfer and technical support in the agricultural and food security sectors and building the capacities of farmers, which includes achieving food security and workers in the agricultural sector and others.

He pointed out that the government appreciates the efforts of the “FAO” organization in Jordan and the valuable assistance provided to Jordan in the fields of agriculture and the rural sector, in addition to providing continuous support that contributes significantly to the Kingdom’s development efforts and providing assistance to host communities and Syrian refugees within the framework of the Jordanian response plan to the Syrian crisis.

The Minister of Agriculture, Khaled Al-Hanaifat, stressed that the project comes within the framework of supporting the efforts of managing water resources and popularizing water harvesting applications to adapt to the effects of climate change, especially that the water challenge is the biggest challenge in the agricultural sector, explaining that the government is moving towards a water harvest plan in the coming years, and that such These projects support the government’s efforts in this direction.

For his part, the representative of “FAO” in Jordan, Nabil Assaf, said that the organization has responded to the current water scarcity situation in Jordan, and this project will be implemented in southern Jordan, targeting the most needy families in Ma’an governorate with an environment conducive to women’s participation, through the creation of non-traditional water resources From rainwater harvesting for agriculture and enhancing the standard of living of the targeted beneficiaries.