Egypt is the world's top date
producer, accounting for 18% and 24% of global and Arab production
respectively.
Aswan- Oct 8, 2022
Minister of Trade and Industry
Ahmed Samir has inaugurated today the 6th International Egyptian
Date Festival, held in Aswan on October 8-10, under the patronage of President
Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
The opening ceremony was attended
by governors of Aswan and New Valley, the Indonesian ambassador in Cairo and secretary-general of Khalifa International Award for Date Palm.
“The government is keen on boosting
Egypt’s promising date sector, which greatly contributes to job creation, export
growth as well as the desired economic and social development,” Samir said in
his keynote speech, referring to a national drive to set up the world’s largest
palm farm to house 2.5 million palm trees in Toshka and al-Owainat.
He pointed out that dates is a
strategic crop, especially that Egypt is the world's top date producer with some
16 million palm trees, accounting for 18% and 24% of global and Arab production
respectively.
The ministry,
he added, is working on advancing the industrial and export sectors where Egypt
boasts major competitive advantages, noting that there are 140 local facilities
operating in the palm business- including production and packaging- in addition
to around 24 exporters.