Maghreban food security commission meets in Rabat

The Maghreban food security commission is holding its 10th session in Rabat this Wednesday under the chairmanship of Algerian agriculture minister, Saed Barkat, whose country is holding the rotating chairmanship of the Arab Maghreb Union (UMA).

The meeting, attended by Maghreban ministers of agriculture and food security and the UMA secretary general, is to assess Maghreban food-security related activities and environment protection programs. It will work out new programs to enhance inter-Maghreban cooperation. The programs will be submitted to the council of foreign ministers due to meet in Algiers after Eid Al-Adha (Immolation feast) by mid March.

The UMA was set up in Marrakesh in 1989 by Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia. Its mechanisms have been however paralyzed for years due to strained relations between member countries, and especially between Morocco and Algeria over Algiers' direct involvement in the Sahara issue.

Last January, UMA Foreign ministers who met in Yaounde on the sidelines of the 21st France-Africa summit, decided to reactivate the UMA sectoral commissions and the follow-up commission, and to hold a meeting in Algiers after Eid Al-Adha.

Three other ministerial commissions, namely those of human resources, infrastructure and economy and finance will hold meetings in the course of the current month respectively in Mauritania, Tunisia and Libya.

All Maghreban ministers stressed at the opening session of the food security commission were optimistic the meeting would reactivate Maghreban integration and stressed the need to adopt a common strategy in food security matters.

The ministerial meeting was preceded Tuesday by a meeting of experts.