Cyprus, Egypt ministers discuss cooperation on agriculture, environment

Cyprus’ Minister of Agriculture Costas Kadis held bilateral meetings with his Egyptian counterparts, Minister of Agriculture Al Sayed Al Qusair and Environment Minister Yasmine Fouad, on the sidelines of the First Cyprus-Egypt Intergovernmental Meeting, held in Cairo, last Saturday.

The meetings focused on deepening cooperation between the two countries in the fields of agricultural research, aquaculture and tackling pollution at sea, a press release from the Press and Information Office said on Monday.

Kadis agreed with his Egyptian counterpart responsible for agriculture to expand existing cooperation in the cultivation of olive trees in Egypt by deploying a team of Cypriot experts to provide technical assistance on olive cultivation management. Cyprus will also support private partnerships with Egypt in this field.

According to the press release, given the fact that the two countries’ agricultural sectors face common challenges, especially due to climate conditions prevailing in Cyprus and Egypt, the two Ministers agreed on updating and upgrading an existing Memorandum of Understanding between agricultural research institutions of the two countries, by including emerging issues related to tackling the impact of climate change on agriculture.

The two Ministers also agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding on issues related to the aquaculture sector.

The Cypriot Minister also briefed the Minister of Environment of Egypt on the progress made regarding the Cyprus Government’s Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East Climate Change Initiative, for coordinating climate action in the region. Yasmine Fouad assured her Cypriot counterpart of Egypt’s support of the Cyprus Initiative. For his part, the Cypriot Minister expressed his support of Egypt’s bid to host the 2022 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28).

The two Ministers also discussed cooperation in tackling marine pollution incidents, following the recent oil spill from Syria that spread in the Eastern Mediterranean and agreed to seek the signing of a relevant agreement in the context of the trilateral cooperation with Greece.

According to the press release, the Cypriot side has also conveyed to the Egyptians a draft Memorandum of Understanding on sustainable management of water resources, recognising that the two countries face common challenges, especially because of climate change.

Kadis extended an invitation to his two counterparts to visit Cyprus which they accepted.