Saudi Arabia's progress in Agricultural sector was brought about by the wise policy pursued by the state under the leadership of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. This policy is crafted on the sound base of encouraging and supporting farmers through the soft and interest-free loans, free allocation of farm lands and purchase of some products from farmers at encouraging prices. Although there is scarcity of water in the Kingdom with its wide deserts, but still Saudi Arabia has been able to accomplish a model agricultural development in order to achieve the strategic goals of development in this vital sector, which aims at achieving a balance between water and food security. Production of foodgrains declined from 4.86 million to 2.592 million during a period from 1994 to 2003 in favor of an increase in production of vegetables and fruits. The area allocated for the production of vegetables now amount to more than 114 hectares while for the fruits the area totals 198 hectares. About 2, 200 million tons of fresh vegetables and 1,333 million tons of fruits were produced last year. In the sphere of poultry and animals, the Kingdom attained last year a figure of 468,000 tons of chickens, 2, 498 million eggs, 333,000 heads of cow, 16,824 million of sheeps and 824,000 camels. Last year, 11,000 fishing boats with a manpower of 25,000 persons were engaged in the field of fisheries.
