Algeria “has sufficient grain stocks until the end of the current year and will not be affected by changes at the global level”. This was stated yesterday in Souk-Ahras by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mohamed Abdelhafid Henni.
“Algeria has taken all measures to ensure coverage of the national market and meet the needs of citizens in cereals,” said Mr. Henni on the first day of his working and inspection visit to the wilaya of Souk-Ahras, from the “Douar Cheikh-Tidjani” farm, specializing in cattle breeding and dairy production, adding that “there is strong pressure on the world market for this material”.
The Minister assured that Algeria has a “safety stock” of cereals which allows it to meet all the needs of citizens on a regular basis, stressing that the combined harvesting campaign generally takes place between June and July, which, according to him, makes it possible to ensure the normal supply of cereals, despite the current world crisis.
Mr. Henni added that the cereals sector is “a priority for the government and that great efforts are being made by its sector to increase cereal production capacities at the national level”, specifying that the essential objectives of the sector rely on the development of agriculture in the southern wilayas.
According to the minister, the wilaya of Souk-Ahras, which has nearly 150,000 hectares of agricultural land, is one of the regions with significant potential, particularly in the cereals, cattle breeding and dairy production sectors, calling on local officials to expand irrigated agricultural areas through the drilling of wells and the creation of water structures of various shapes.
After having inspected the structures of the Douar Cheikh-Tidjani farm, with an area of 520 hectares including 40 hectares irrigated and which has 128 head of cattle including 60 dairy cows, the Minister of Agriculture estimated that the wilaya of Souk-Ahras, whose annual milk production amounts to 90 million litres, is “a concrete example illustrating the development experienced by the milk sector”.
This farm “is an example to follow”. The owner-managed to develop his project and increase the number of dairy cattle considerably by using modern techniques, the minister recalled.
The latter proceeded to the inauguration of the new headquarters of the Conservation of Forests, where he presided over the ceremony of symbolic handing over of 4 authorizations to drill wells out of a total of 148 files examined and validated at the level of the one-stop-shop.
The Minister also presided over the signing ceremony of two cooperation and partnership agreements between the Conservation of Forests, the local Chamber of Agriculture, and the beekeeping cooperative, before moving to the commune of Lahnancha where he inspected poultry farm at the mechta of “Bekkoucha”.
