NNA – Caretaker Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Abbas Haj Hassan, revealed in a statement that “the law entrusted the Ministry of Economy with disposing of all matters relating to the purchase of wheat, flour, import and soft wheat for bakeries.” Therefore, Minister of Economy Amin Salam, who confirmed that there is no wheat crisis, is fully aware. What he says and therefore there is no crisis in this context.
He added, “The crisis may have already been fabricated, as evidenced by the fact that all the crises that this sector witnessed were fabricated by some merchants, and the aim of them was quick gain and profit at a time when citizens are struggling with the aim of obtaining their livelihood that is being manipulated. This is a taboo.”
Hajj Hassan called on Minister Salam to “put public opinion before all the data it has,” stressing that “all public prosecutions must act, with the aim of curbing these practices, because playing with a loaf of bread is absolutely forbidden, and the negligent and manipulative must be brought to justice.”
Hajj Hassan confirmed, “The Ministry of Agriculture launched the national plan to advance the wheat sector by cultivating it in order to save citizens the high costs they incur to obtain the loaf, in addition to that Lebanon will be able in this case to secure its needs by cultivating soft wheat, and thus reaching the abolition of the monopoly.” .
Regarding the cultivation of about 15,000 dunums of soft wheat, Minister Hajj Hassan pointed out, “This area is not sufficient, of course, and the plan was targeting much larger areas because what can be grown in Lebanon of soft and hard wheat and barley exceeds 200,000 dunums. Only the value of 15,000 dunums has been secured, provided as a gift of soft wheat, which, if durum wheat is added to it, will secure what Lebanon needs in the next season.
Hajj Hassan stressed, “If Lebanon were to cultivate 50,000 dunams, it would be able, within two or three years, to secure 80-85 percent of what the Lebanese market needs of soft wheat.
Regarding the mechanism set by the ministry to reach this goal, Hajj Hassan indicated that “in partnership with international organizations, particularly the FAO, the World Food Program and the Lebanese army, the Agricultural Scientific Research Authority will have to pay attention to the issue of seed multiplication.”
And the Minister of Agriculture explained, “The seeds that will be sown this year will be replaced next year instead of buying wheat or waiting for external donations, exactly as is happening in the rest of the world, similar to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which resorted to cultivating soft wheat because of the global crisis, and it is the same wheat that was planted.” In Lebanon, in addition to Egypt, Iraq and other Arab countries.
Hajj Hassan considered, “Food security is confined to a crisis that will not end soon, but is continuing globally, and therefore we must increase the cultivated areas, whether they are rain-fed or irrigated from soft wheat.”
Minister Hajj Hassan announced, “The ministry is currently negotiating with the World Bank regarding the agricultural sector, provided that a large part of the donations provided will be allocated to support wheat cultivation and farmers.”
He pointed out, “The ministry launched a tender through the Agricultural Scientific Research Authority according to the conditions set by the Public Procurement Authority, but in the first time no one applied.” Seeds, in preparation for next year.
Hajj Hassan added, “I had a conversation with the FAO representative in Lebanon, and the outcome was that the negotiations ended positively with the Japanese side in order to support the wheat sector, and the World Food Program will provide a donation very soon, which will be announced soon.”
Hajj Hassan stressed, “We are obligated to manage people’s affairs, and food security cannot be tampered with.” He said: “Our main concern in the Ministry of Agriculture is not to shake food security through the cultivation of soft and durum wheat, and the purchase of the crop by the Ministry of Economy.”
Hajj Hassan concluded: The files on the government table are important, and the Council of Ministers is obligated to manage people’s affairs.
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