On Sunday, Libyan officials at the Ministry of Agriculture met with a delegation from the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS). They discussed food security, and ways to improve the quality and efficiency of agricultural production and livestock in Libya.
The delegation included the IOFS’s Director General, Yerlan Bidolet, and the organization’s Director of Bilateral Relations, Dolit Dave.
The meeting discussed views on developing food security research, promoting international and regional cooperation to achieve food security, and improving the quality and efficiency of agricultural production and livestock.
According to the statement by the Ministry, they briefed the IOFS delegation on future plans for the development of agricultural production in the country.
They also emphasised the importance of supporting international cooperation, and exchanging expertise in order to achieve food security and improve the quality and efficiency of agricultural production and livestock in Libya.
In December 2022, the Libyan Minister of Economy and Trade, Mohamed Al-Hwaij said that the Ministry aims to plant 20 million olive trees in various regions of the country. The Ministry recently launched the first national award of its kind for the best olive oil in Libya.
In September, Libyan farmer, Mohamed Al-Futaisi, told the Al-Araby Al-Jadeed newspaper that perennial trees are gradually dying due to drought. Another farmer added that the drought has led to massive losses in olive trees during the past two years, due to a lack of rain and groundwater.
The Agriculture Ministry planned to launch a project to save millions of olive trees by adopting a distillation system. The project was stopped due to a lack of funding, according to Libyan Agricultural expert, Hadi Khalaf.
Khalaf confirmed the need to support farmers and begin the postponed distillation project, in order to preserve Libya’s olive trees.
In August, the Libyan Centre for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences (LCRSSS) announced that Libya had been exposed to drought during the last three years. It also called for reducing the effects of the drought as soon as possible and declaring a state of emergency.