The International Forum of "Rural Saudi Arabia" discusses the importance of partnership between the public and private sectors to empower rural families and develop the agricultural sector
The first international forum of "Rural Saudi Arabia" discussed the role of rural society in achieving sustainable development goals, according to the targets of Saudi Vision 2030, in addition to the importance of partnerships between the public and private sectors to achieve this, and their effective contribution to the development of rural communities.
This came during the opening dialogue session of the forum, with the participation of His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Talal bin Badr, Governor of Al-Ahsa, and His Excellency the Minister of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Eng. Abdulrahman bin Abdul Mohsen Al-Fadli.
His Royal Highness Prince Saud bin Talal bin Badr, Governor of Al-Ahsa, pointed out the importance of the "Saudi Rural" program in building a new generation of young people who have sufficient interest and awareness in agriculture, in addition to the program's contribution to supporting and empowering rural women and productive families, by providing a supportive work environment to achieve its goals, in addition to the legislation of the agricultural system that enables the program's work, noting that the agricultural sectors supported by the program constitute (43%) of the total agricultural and female labor force in the Kingdom; which contributes to raising agricultural production, and helps achieve high self-sufficiency rates for many agricultural crops, to enhance food security. His Highness explained that the private sector plays an important role in developing the agricultural sector in rural areas, by supporting the use of modern agricultural technologies, in partnership with the government sector that sets legislation and plans, and motivates farmers and local producers through these programs, and encourages them to increase production, and raise its efficiency; so that there is no gap in the supply chain, which contributed to supporting the agricultural sector, and increasing its contribution to the gross domestic product. In turn, His Excellency the Minister confirmed that the Ministry's strategies and programs come in order to achieve the goals of Saudi Vision 2030, as the "Saudi Rural" program seeks to achieve sustainable development, by focusing on supporting (8) sectors, and to benefit from the comparative advantage of each region; as the Kingdom enjoys vast areas and different climates; which contributed to achieving social stability, increasing income for more than (80) thousand beneficiaries of the program, and improving their quality of life, adding that the "Saudi Rural" program is distinguished by the fact that it reaches beneficiaries in their regions without the citizen having to go to the trouble of moving to obtain its services. His Excellency added that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a technical partner of the "Saudi Rural" program, as it contributed significantly to raising the level of the program, by providing technical consultations, and we worked together as an integrated team to achieve the program's ambitious goals, by implementing them on the ground, through national directors from Saudi youth for each program. Minister Al-Fadli explained that the ministry seeks to enhance entrepreneurship in the Saudi countryside, as it launched (3) programs to support emerging companies, including the "Sunbula" program concerned with the agricultural sector, and the Research and Innovation Agency works through collaborative work with universities and research bodies to improve and raise the quality and efficiency of agricultural production, livestock and fish wealth, which contributes to achieving self-sufficiency and enhancing food security in the Kingdom, in accordance with the ministry's strategies and the goals of Saudi Vision 2030.
Source: www.alriyadh.com
