Iran’s Deputy Minister of Agriculture Alireza Mohajer has voiced his country’s readiness to cooperate with BRICS member countries on agricultural sector. The Tehran Times reports that Mohajer made the remarks while addressing the 14th meeting of the BRICS ministers of agriculture in Russia on Saturday. He referred to Iran’s exemplary geographical position, being situated in the intersection of the North-South and East-West transit corridors, noting that the country can help expand regional and international trade networks in the area of agriculture.
The deputy minister highlighted that Iran is an effective partner in bilateral and multilateral co-operation. Iran says it will make efforts to remove the obstacles in the way of enhancement of agricultural co-operation amongst BRICS members and expects other member countries to help open new chapters in agricultural economy and trade. The 14th Meeting of the BRICS Ministers of Agriculture was held in Moscow with the Iranian delegation in attendance.
Representatives of Brazil, China, India, Russia and South Africa took part in the meeting. New members of the association, namely Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Ethiopia, also participated in the event. The meeting addressed the development of sustainable agriculture, the establishment of the BRICS grain exchange, and other issues. Roughly one-third of Iran’s total surface area is suitable for farmland, but because of poor soil and a lack of adequate water distribution in many areas, most of it is not under cultivation.
Only 12% of the total land area is under cultivation (arable land, orchards and vineyards) but less than one-third of the cultivated area is irrigated. The rest is devoted to dryland farming. Some 92 percent of agricultural products depend on water. The western and northwestern portions of the country have the most fertile soils. Iran’s food security index stands at around 96 percent. About 3% of the total land area is used for grazing and small-fodder production. Most of the grazing is done on mostly semi-dry rangeland in mountain areas and in areas surrounding the large deserts.
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