Amman, Mar. 23 (Petra) – Minister of Agriculture and Chairman of the Food Security Council (FSC), Khaled Hneifat, and Representative of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Nabil Assaf, signed an agreement on Sunday to support the council, Ministry of Agriculture, and Department of Statistics in establishing a Food Security and Nutrition Observatory for the Arab Mashreq Sub-Region.

The agreement comes in response to His Majesty King Abdullah II's directives and follows discussions by ministers of the Mashreq countries during their meeting in Amman in 2022, as well as the decision of the FAO Regional Conference for the Near East in 2024.

Speaking during the signing ceremony, Hneifat said that the observatory will be a "dynamic" tool that provides analytical and forward-looking information to assist decision-makers in addressing food security challenges.

On its action mechanism, the minister noted the new project will rely on economic models, artificial intelligence, and machine learning technologies, and will be linked to international and regional platforms to enhance cooperation and achieve "sustainable" food security in the region.

The observatory aims to enhance food security and nutrition in Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria by providing periodic analyses and reports on food security, according to a ministry statement.

The statement added that the project will also monitor key indicators, issue early warnings, and develop a "comprehensive" regional information system that integrates local and global data,
//Petra// AG

23/03/2025 16:14:00