Saudi Arabia has signed an agreement with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to implement the latter's technical assistance projects in the Kingdom. The accord was signed at FAO headquarters in Rome during its Regional Conference for the Near East. Under the five-year program from 2012 to 2016, FAO will provide technical assistance and expertise for 17 specific projects in Saudi Arabia covering several areas. Laurent Thomas, FAO Assistant Director General for Technical Cooperation, and Khaled Al-Fuhaid, Saudi Deputy Minister for Agriculture, signed the Memo of Understanding in the presence of FAO Director General Jose Graziano da Silva, according to a report published today by Saudi Gazette. The MoU will include the transfer of technology, sustainable management of natural resources including water and forests, sustainable crop production and protection, the rational management of animal and fisheries resources, animal health, capacity building and the strengthening of rural institutions. The program aims to benefit small-scale agricultural producers and fishermen, who will be able to increase and diversify food production.
