The Deputy Minister of Agriculture was on an official visit to Sudan to discuss agricultural cooperation. István Nagy and State Minister for Agriculture Yagoub Mohammed El-Tayeb Ibraim signed a cooperation agreement on promoting Hungarian-Sudanese trade and research & development relations within the fields of agriculture and the food industry.
“Hungary is prepared to cooperate with Sudan in several fields, including the seed sector, animal and plant health, the processing industry, food production and slaughterhouse technologies” Mr. Nagy told is Sudanese negotiating partners. In addition, agricultural adaption to climate change is a priority area of research in Hungary, meaning Sudan’s achievements could be of use to Hungarian researchers.
The Deputy Minister stressed that there are many Hungarian research institutes and enterprises that are prepared to cooperate within the fields of milk processing, slaughterhouse technologies, animal registration and agricultural machinery, including within a business framework. He told reporters that the two countries are similar in that their agricultural potential makes them both food exporters, but that the development of local industry is essential to the full exploitation of this fact. Hungary has major experience and expertise in developing the required food safety throughout the full food chain, and Hungarian experts have realised complex programmes all over the world within this field.
In addition to visiting the Ministry of Agriculture, during his official trip to Sudan the Deputy Prime Minister also met with Minister of Animal Husbandry Musa Tibin, who expressed interest in Hungarian animal protection, veterinary cooperation, disease eradication programmes and vaccines. Mr. Nagy also held negotiations on opportunities for developing agricultural relations with Investment Minister Mudesir Abdul-Ghani and State Minister Dr. Obeidalla Mohamed Obeidalla from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
On the second day of his visit, the Deputy Minister met with Deputy President and Prime Minister of Sudan Bakri Hassan Saleh, in addition to which he signed a memorandum of understanding aimed at improving relations at the Ministry of Agriculture.
Sudan is a country with major uncultivated areas and some 110 million livestock, and its goal is to become the region’s pantry via the modernisation of agriculture and the establishment of a local processing industry. Several high-level Sudanese experts in leading positions in both the public and private sector once studied in Hungary, and in addition to the improving political and domestic economic conditions, the African country is also happy to receive Hungarian projects and investments.