Turkey will continue its support toward D-8 in furthering cooperation in agricultural sector. Mr. Faruk Celik, Minister of Food, Agriculture and Livestock reiterated Turkey’s high commitment to the D-8 during call on him by Dr. Seyed AliMohammad Mousavi, the D-8 Secretary-General, on 07 April 2016 at the former’s off?ce in Ankara. 

Dr. Mousavi mentioned, “The share of agriculture in D-8 trade has increased but, that does not reflect the true potential of D-8. Turkey is one of the top countries in the world with the highest agricultural income and thus, the country should lead D-8 agriculture cooperation”. He added that D-8 member states targeted trade volume around $500 billion in 2018 according to the D-8 Roadmap and in order to reach this target, the share of agriculture must be increased in overall D-8 trade. Dr. Mousavi invited Minister Celik to the 6th D-8 Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Food Security which will be held in Islamabad, Pakistan soon this year.

The meeting also focused on increase in cooperation in agriculture and food security among D-8 member countries and the activities of Working Groups on Seed Bank, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Fertilizer, Animal Feed and Trade Standards.

 

Minister Celik expressed that Turkey is ready to contribute to sustainable global food security among D-8 member states. He also emphasized the imperative of concrete programs of sharing experiences in order to improve welfare and food safety within the D-8. He highlighted the role of private sector in the implementation of D-8 programs and underlined the importance of promoting people’s awareness.