H.E. Zehra Zümrüt SELÇUK received H.E. Prof. Ibrahim Adam Ahmed AL DUKHAIRI, Director-General of the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD), at the SESRIC headquarters to explore potential collaborations and joint initiatives.

The meeting focused primarily on agricultural development and food security across OIC member countries, recognizing the crucial role of agriculture in OIC economies in terms of employment, production, and overall development.

H.E. SELÇUK acknowledged the importance of the OIC-2025 Plan of Action, which emphasizes the development of the agriculture sector to achieve food security and enhance growth across the Islamic world. She added that Ministers of Agriculture from OIC member countries have convened nine times to address major issues and formulate joint solutions. The recent Ninth Ministerial Conference on Food Security and Agricultural Development in the OIC Member States (MCFSAD) took place on 2 October 2023 in Doha, Qatar.

SESRIC also conducts in-depth analyses and evaluations of developments in agriculture and food security in OIC Member Countries, producing technical background reports for major conferences. For instance, recent reports include the OIC Water Report, OIC Environment Report, and a report on Agricultural Production and Trade Complementarities among OIC Member Countries.

H.E. SELÇUK highlighted the various capacity-building programs related to agriculture and food security, including Agriculture and Food Security Capacity Building Programme (Agri-CaB), Cotton Capacity Building Programme (Cotton-CaB), and more, adding that Since the establishment of these programs, 106 activities have been organized, bringing together 3,237 participants from various OIC Member Countries.

On his part, H.E. AL DUKHAIRI thanked H.E. SELÇUK for her warm welcome and underlined the importance of fostering joint initiatives that leverage the expertise and resources of both SESRIC and AOAD. He underscored the significance of strategic partnerships between both institutions to address shared challenges and advance common goals in OIC countries, highlighting that this exchange of expertise is envisioned to strengthen the capacities of OIC member countries in the realm of agricultural development.

The meeting concluded with both leaders emphasizing the importance of sustainable agricultural solutions that align with the broader goals of socio-economic development and self-sufficiency within the OIC countries.

AOAD is one of the specialized Arab organizations, functioning under the umbrella of the League of Arab States. As such, its members are all the member states of the Arab League. The organization's goals are defined on two dimensions: nationally as well as regionally. At the national level, AOAD is to assist member countries in developing and enhancing their respective agricultural sectors. At the regional level, AOAD is to facilitate coordination amongst member states in the agricultural sector, with the aim of achieving a fully integrated Arab economy union, and food self-sufficiency.