2024-01-08 20:56:10
ALGIERS – The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Youcef Cherfa announced, Monday in Algiers, the launch from next March of work to build 350 local cereal storage centers with a view to ensuring food security from the country.
Presenting the action plan for the year 2024 for the revival of the Agriculture sector before the Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Environmental Protection at the National People’s Assembly (APN), in presence of its president Mr. Faris Ziani and the Minister of Relations with Parliament, Basma Azouar, Mr. Cherfa indicated that 350 local cereal storage centers will be built to increase storage capacities to 9 million tonnes (compared to 3.4 million tonnes currently)”. The construction of each center, with a storage capacity of 6,000 tonnes, will require an amount of 25 billion/DA.
“The operation was decentralized to the level of the walis with the provision of the necessary funds,” he said, adding that “all the technical files will be sent, mid-January, to each wilaya to launch the work of realization from next March. “The completion time is set at 8 months,” said the minister.
Mr. Cherfa reported the rehabilitation of 16 storage centers (metal silos) which will be received in 18 months, thereby announcing the construction of 30 silos at ports and centers dedicated to cereals.
Concerning the development of the pulse sector, the minister stressed that his ministerial department will work, this year, to increase the cultivated area to 150,000 hectares in order to cover national needs for lentils and chickpeas.
Last December, the purchase prices of legumes were revised upwards from 15,000 Da/Quintal to 20,000 Da/Quintal to promote the sector, “in application of the decisions of the President of the Republic”.
At the same time, the minister showed his ministry’s willingness to support owners of irrigated cultivable areas and grant them facilitations.
He also recalled the establishment of an official contractual system between producers of cereals and legumes, the Algerian Interprofessional Cereals Office (OAIC) and local cooperatives, with a view to ensuring the traceability of seeds, production and respect for the technical process, with continuous monitoring in the field.
Acquisition of two million doses of foot-and-mouth disease vaccine
Concerning industrial crops, Mr. Cherfa reported the establishment of new mechanisms to support industrial crop sectors, such as corn, oilseed plants and sugar beets, especially that the sector aims to devote 45,000 hectares to the cultivation of oilseed plants during the year 2024.
There will also be discussion of accelerating the pace of implementation of the resistant fruit tree planting program with the completion of planned silvicultural work involving 1.4 million plants, with a financial envelope estimated at 2. 4 billion DA, across 18 steppe, sub-Saharan and Saharan wilayas.
Recalling the operation of planting species of dried fruits (almond, walnut and pistachio) and argan during the past season, the minister indicated that “preparations are underway to launch another season, from the month of October 2024 for the planting of 2.6 million plants, like varieties of almond, apricot, pistachio, argan and walnuts across 37 mountainous, steppe and Saharan wilayas.
Furthermore, a program is planned for the launch of the planting of one million olive trees and one million palm trees, through support and incentive mechanisms for the benefit of farmers during the current year, in accordance with the instructions of the President of the Republic, Mr. Abdelmadjid Tebboune, he added. To combat the spread of foot-and-mouth disease, “the launch, as part of a proactive action, of the “operation of vaccination of the entire animal resource, with the acquisition of a large quantity of vaccines, i.e. nearly two million vaccines and its generalization throughout the national territory”, he said.
According to the minister, “65% of cattle were vaccinated in record time (only 20 days), with the programming of preventive campaigns concerning contagious diseases.”
Inauguration of a milk production unit of the “Giplait” group in Rouiba
The minister also mentioned the establishment of “an emergency plan” to revive the red meat sector and protect herds, welcoming the instructions given by the President of the Republic during the meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Sunday last, concerning the creation of laboratories at ports and airports, to ensure compliance with health standards when importing meat.
For the white meat sector, Mr. Cherfa affirmed that “all the necessary measures have been taken to revive this sector in coordination with all the stakeholders concerned”.
Concerning the milk sector, the minister announced the inauguration of a production unit with a capacity of 1,000,000 liters/day, by the Giplait group in Rouiba, in addition to the development of breeding structures for the production of milk, the review of support mechanisms for the raw milk sector and support for breeders.
To guarantee the regular supply of the market with widely consumed agricultural products, such as potatoes, onions, garlic and meats, the missions of the Groups and Offices under supervision will be strengthened in the creation of strategic stocks, with the increase in the market’s coverage capacity over 12 months, according to the minister.
The connection of agricultural operations to the electricity network will continue in coordination with the sectors concerned, with the programming of more than 10,000 agricultural operations over a distance exceeding 9,000 km2 with a view to connecting them to the electricity network this year.
On the other hand, the ministry tends to expand the irrigated areas and to concretize the program of reuse of purified water in treatment and purification stations in coordination with the Hydraulics sector.
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