The 4th Agri Business Forum Held in Nablus.
Tuesday 18th March 2014-03-2014
Ma"an news agency- Nablus- the MoA general directorate for rural development department by the cooperation with JICA & EVAP, the project on improved extension for value added in the JRRV areas funded from JICA held the 4th agri business forum in Nablus by presence 21 cooperatives from the JRRV areas & 23 companies and facilitators and big number of agriculture extensionists and experts their specialized in agriculture development beside, the expert team from EVAP project Mr.Hiroyasu ONUMA, Mr. Masahiko TANIGHUCHI, Ms. Naoko YAMADA. And, the representative from JICA.
Mr. Mohammad Fatayer welcomed the participants and opening the session from Nablus DoA he represent MoA. He mentioned in his speech the importance to conduct the agri business forum that can make integration between the private & public sector beside supported farmers in the marketing field.
From his side, Mr.Amin Abu-Al-Soud the project operation manager said, that the forum goal is to exchange experiences and information"s, and to know the modern agriculture methods and techniques beside to know the local market needs by matching between the agriculture cooperatives from one side and companies from the other side, so the aims from this forum is to contribute in reducing the agriculture production costs and at the same time to increased the profitability and the income for farmers, in addition to, dispensing to buy the Israeli agriculture products that are imported by providing alternative national Palestinian products.
The roles of the extensionists are concentrated on facilitating the communication and matching between farmers and facilitators in an easy and effective way. Beside empowered the extensionists to prepare a plan built on the needs and the priorities of farmers and the local market that contribute in profiling the traditional agriculture production and increased sales and farmers profitability.
In this forum 22 company and traders were participate such as fresh vegetable traders, livestock and fodder traders, agriculture production needs, food making, agriculture loans, fresh cheese, yogurt traders, agriculture vehicles companies, beside to, it was organized 9 technical extension corners disseminated in a studied way in the meeting room by using modern agriculture techniques that done by EVAP project and submitted to 21 cooperative association in the JRRV area by cooperation with agriculture extension team in Nablus, Tubas, and Jericho.
Beside the opening speech that Mr.Fatayer presented –director of Nablus DoA- it was several activities the most important one were matching between agriculture associations and companies in a way to let all farmers to visit all traders and companies corners.
At the end , MoA & EVAP project sees that conduct like these forums can contribute in strengthen the agriculture extension services presented to farmers not only in the JRRV area but in all the west bank governorate, so this forum will be one of the most important methods that used in updating information for farmers and tracking the local market so the presented extension services for farmers built on the market needs that enhances and emphasis of MoA vision and the national strategy for agriculture extension in supporting the marketed ideas.
The participants thanked the Japanese government and "JICA", EVAP project that gave them the chance to participate in like these important activities because it can improve the profitability for rural families in Palestine.
