JEDDAH, 11 January 2004 — The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry is turning its focus on agriculture and water.
“Issues related to water resources and agricultural production are being addressed through the chamber’s specialized committee,” Dr. Adil Bushnak, JCCI board member and president of the Bushnak Group, told a press conference at the chamber yesterday.
“There is an increasing need to recycle waste water for agriculture in a bid to boost food production in the Kingdom,” said Dr. Bushnak.
Two-thirds of the Kingdom’s water is renewable and could be used for increasing food production, he said.
“Through our campaign to saving water and recycle used water for agriculture, we want to make Jeddah a gateway to agricultural production as well,” said Bushnak, an expert in water technology.
“Avoiding wastage of water is of utmost importance to serve the needs of agriculture and feed the Kingdom’s increasing population,” said Ali Al-Jomaih, a leading agriculturist. “The agricultural sector cannot be healthy without the cooperation of businessmen and investors involved in providing facilities such as storage and distribution.”
The JCCI has assumed the role of educating the public about the need to conserve water and recycle waste water. It is organizing presentations by experts and is holding an exhibition by various companies related to agriculture and water at its headquarters on Thursday.
Four presentations have been scheduled for the day. Dr. Bushnak will focus on the future role of businessmen in the fields of water and agriculture, Abdullah Al-Obaid of the Research and Agricultural Development in the Ministry of Water and Electricity, will give a presentation on the continuing efforts of the ministry in directing water usage, Dr. Ali Al-Takhais, deputy minister of water and agriculture, will discuss “Arab Armor: A Model for Agriculture,” and Ali Al-Jomaih will analyze the problems of agricultural companies and their expectations.
