The 34th Edition The Minister of Agriculture Inaugurates Sahara International Agricultural Expo

Fathy Elsayh

• Exhibitors from 20 countries participate in the exhibition with comprehensive coverage of the agricultural sector

• Sahara offers over 90 educational seminars from field experts

• For the first time in the exhibition, free of charge consultancy services for the farmers

El-Sayed El-Quseir, Minister of Agriculture & Land Reclamation, inaugurated today the 34th edition of the International Agricultural Exhibition “Sahara Expo” which is the largest agricultural exhibition in Africa. This year will witness the participation of 170 companies specialized in agricultural fields from 20 different countries. The exhibition will last for 4 days from 11 to 14 September, at Egypt International Exhibition Center (EIEC) in New Cairo and it is organized by “Informa Markets”, the leading organizer of exhibitions around the world.

El-Qusair praised the expo organization and the number of foreign companies participating in it, especially that this edition comes in light of the continuation of the Russian-Ukrainian war, which highlighted the importance of achieving self-sufficiency in basic agricultural crops and even increasing export opportunities.

In the same context, the Minister of Agriculture explained, “The agriculture sector is one of the resilient sectors, which has proven to be the most shock-resistant sector and has achieved an accelerated growth rate”. He also stressed that the Egyptian state gives great attention to agriculture because it is the main source of food production and raw materials for industry, and that the sector absorbs 25% of employment and contributes with more than 15% of the national income.

On the other hand, the exhibition director, Hanaa Youssef said: “We have a leading role in supporting the directives of the Egyptian’s state that are compatible with Egypt’s Vision 2030, by providing many services and solutions that contribute to the implementation of that strategy. Sahara Expo will provide, for the first time, advisory services to farmers through a large number of key experts and specialists in agricultural fields. Moreover, this year’s exhibition is also characterized by more comprehensive coverage of all current topics related to the agricultural sector.

Hanaa added, “As part of the exhibition’s growth and in line with market needs, Sahara has dedicated an entire sector for water and irrigation systems including the latest technology in the areas of: deep water well drilling pumps, modern irrigation systems, and water treatment mechanisms.”

In line with the exhibition’s objective of connecting industry experts and creating a huge network of professionals, Sahara Expo introduces a match-making program. Exhibition representatives will be coordinating pre-scheduled meetings that connect exhibitors with related visitors across all businesses covered based on common interests to ensure maximum outcome for both parties. The program will witness the participation of visitors from several countries in Africa and the Middle East to ensure that all participants in the exhibition are provided with expansion opportunities for their businesses. The exhibition will also host more than 90 sessions and workshops specialized in the field of agriculture, and these sessions will be moderated by key experts in the field from Egypt and abroad, in order to display the latest developments and technologies in the agricultural sector.

And For the second time in a row, the Embassy of the Netherlands in Cairo has chosen the Sahara International Exhibition to host two dedicated workshops in the field of agriculture and sustainability in cooperation with the Netherlands-African Business Council (NABC). The first workshop will focus on the impact of plant variety protection on the development of agriculture in Egypt, while the second workshop will focus on different ways of adapting to the climate.

It is noteworthy that Sahara Expo is the commercial heart of the Egyptian agricultural sector, and the most powerful platform for agricultural and livestock production in the Middle East and Africa, as it brings together local and regional manufacturers and traders from various sectors of the agricultural supply chain. The expo is considered a golden opportunity for networking and expanding the business especially with the participation of many international delegations including: China, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, France, India, Jordan, Turkey, and Lebanon, in addition to the attendance of more than 20,000 local and international visitors.