From the Newsroom*
São Paulo – The Algerian minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Said Barkat, met this weekend, in the northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco, with the head of the semiarid unit at the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), Pedro Gama. According to the advisor to the foreign relations secretariat at the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Rui Samarcos Lora, who accompanied Barkat, the two discussed possibilities for technical cooperation and exchange in the agricultural field.
On Friday (9th) the minister had already talked about cooperation with the head of Embrapa Vegetables, in the Federal District. The terms of an eventual agreement will be discussed later on by the two countries.
Also in Pernambuco, Barkat visited a small grape farmer, a medium-sized mango farmer, and winery Rio Sol, which has a large production of grapes. Fruit planting in the region of the São Francisco River Valley is carried out using technology developed by Embrapa Semiarid.
The minister also had a meeting with the governor of the state, Eduardo Campos, grandson of former governor Miguel Arraes, who was exiled in Algeria during the military dictatorship in Brazil and made many friends there. Also present was the widow of Arraes, Madalena.
Barkat and his delegation flew back to Algiers yesterday, after a week in Brazil visiting sector organisations, companies, rural properties, government organisations, and research centres.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
