Under the slogan “Cultivating innovation for a better future”, over 250 companies from countries across the world participated in the 36th edition of the Sahara International Agricultural Exhibition held in Cairo last week.

The exhibition is an opportunity to explore new solutions in crop management, irrigation systems and advanced farming technologies, including artificial intelligence and precision agriculture, according to the exhibition’s organising company Informa Markets Egypt.

Alaa Farouk, the minister of agriculture and land reclamation, said that the government was keen to increase arable land through projects such as New Delta and Mostaqbal Misr (Future of Egypt) to meet food needs and reduce the gap between production and consumption, thereby enhancing the chances of achieving self-sufficiency, especially in strategic crops.

Farouk said the efforts were part of the 2023-24 Agricultural Development Plan which includes pumping LE116 billion worth of investments in the sector.

Hani Khafagi, general manager of Informa Markets, underscored the importance of the agricultural sector for Egypt’s economy which contributes 11.8 per cent to the GDP and employs nearly 28 per cent of the workforce in Egypt.

Khafagi said the exhibition included workshops and consultation services in the booths of several participating companies to inform farmers of new locally-produced types of fertilisers, pesticides, seeds, and irrigation technologies. The exhibition also features tractors made in Egypt.

“The stability of the dollar/pound exchange rate has helped in increasing the variety of the products on show this year,” Khafagi added.

“Our company is specialised in innovative irrigation. We sell manual and automatic water hoses and filters designed for different types of farms. We have agents in the United States, Italy, and Spain,” Ahmed Salama, whose company has been participating in the event for the last five years, said.

Salama told Al-Ahram Weekly that his keenness to attend the event was because his profits started to increase due to the expertise and ideas he gained since his first visit to Sahara.

Fatma Nosseir is also an exhibitor whose company works in building irrigation units powered by solar energy.

This, Nosseir said, saves clients the cost of diesel and electricity bills and is not expensive as the cost of one unit is equivalent to three years of electricity bills and lasts up to 30 years.

The exhibition features a business matchmaking programme, educational programmes in which experts discuss the challenges and opportunities in agriculture, agricultural consultations, a food security seminar, networking events for young entrepreneurs, and a forum on women in agriculture.

Fatma, who is about to finish her graduate studies at Banha University, said the exhibition was rich with new agricultural techniques and practices and was particularly interesting for post-graduate students to find a topic to work on.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 19 September, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly