Food security has been a rising global concern since COVID-19 lockdowns caused global logistics bottlenecks. It came to the forefront again due to the geopolitical fallout between two of the world’s biggest grain exporters (Russia and Ukraine).

Egypt has been highly affected by those events, as it imports about 40% of its food needs, according to European Union data. It is also the world’s biggest wheat importer, securing most of its needs from Russia and Ukraine.

That has put the government under immense pressure to reduce dependence on imported food. That is a massive task. President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi noted in May that local production “must be huge to cover the country’s needs in all sectors.”

To realize that aim, Aya Zoheir, research section head at Zilla Capital, told Arab Finance last year that Egypt needs “a comprehensive approach that combines support for domestic production, diversification of imports, strategic reserves, and investment in research and development.”

Increasing investment will be essential to becoming food secure. “Governments need to invest more in agriculture across the region, where almost all countries are import-dependent,” Corinne Fleischer, World Food Program Regional director for the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe, highlighted in 2023.

Large sector

According to State Information Services in June, agriculture is a pillar of the Egyptian economy, contributing about 15% of GDP and representing a quarter of the country’s workforce.

Mordor Intelligence Agriculture in Egypt Market Size and Share Analysis report estimates the local agricultural market will be worth $5.2 billion in 2024. By 2029, it should reach $6 billion, growing at an average annual rate of 3%. That is only nearly 1% faster than the annual population growth rate.

However, the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development told the media that it plans to increase agriculture production by 30% this year alone.

Achieving that growth pace is vital. According to the 2023 Global Hunger Index, “Egypt sustains a moderate level of hunger, ranking 57th out of 121 countries.” The sector’s biggest underlying problems are affordability, quality, and safety, the report added.

With a population of over 100 million, local agricultural activity must increase significantly to reduce Egypt’s dependence on imports. Currently, Egypt is the world’s largest wheat importer, buying over 12 million tons of the crop annually, according to a February article by Mahmoud Riyad, secretary-general of the Egyptian Milling Association.

Urgent cost issue

While Egypt’s annual inflation reached 35.6% in October, food inflation was double that, at 71.7%, according to the Central Bank (CBE).

That has forced families to reduce consumption. Riyad noted that this high inflation resulted in a 17.8% reduction in agricultural imports from January to September 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.

Despite its dependence on imported food staples to meet domestic consumption of certain commodities, Egypt is expanding exports of fruits and vegetables. According to the General Authority for Export and Import Control at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, agricultural exports constitute the second-largest source of foreign currency.

Minister of Agriculture El Sayed El Quseir announced in June that during the first five months of 2024, total agricultural exports exceeded 4.5 million tons, worth about $2.6 billion. The minister pointed out that Egypt ranked first in the exports of oranges and frozen strawberries.

Innovation perks

As with most other sectors, technology and innovation will prove vital. In June, Minister of Planning and Economic Development Hala el-Saeed stressed the need for innovative solutions to increase production and promote food security.

“Agri-tech and precise agriculture techniques enabled by digital solutions are key for bolstering productivity and food and water security,” agriculture expert Sherif Fayyad told the Egyptian Gazette in February.

In addition, digital agriculture enhances the quality of production and increases yield.  “Implementation of digital technology helps farmers access information to better manage crops and livestock and thus helps them make better agricultural decisions,” expert Khalil el-Malki told the Egyptian Gazette in February. “Exact statistics tell farmers how much fertilizers and source materials are needed.”

El-Malki explained that statistics give farmers precise data about temperature and soil humidity, which they can use to “control the amount of water used for irrigation and the amount of pesticides and fertilizers.”

Digital technologies are also crucial for the cost of production. According to a May 2024 study by the Agricultural Information Institute and Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, “Digital technologies can enhance growers’ economic benefits by reducing labor and input costs, increasing yields, and improving quality.”

Egypt has a long way to go to benefit from agri-tech fully. El-Malki showed that a significant barrier is a need for more awareness among farmers, especially individual small-scale ones, of potential benefits. Farmers should receive comprehensive training to learn how to utilize digital agriculture methods. “At present, many farmers do not understand how the introduction of new technologies will benefit them,” he said. Further training is needed to encourage farmers to utilize new tools.

Scaling up smartphone access will be necessary. Andy Jenkinson, chief of technology at Varda, a startup that operates a cloud-based data platform for farming and food, said, “[We are working] to increase [farmers’] access to both the physical products themselves and the information and tools to enable them to plan effectively and manage operations.”

Gov’t tech efforts

Digitizing agricultural activities is not a novel concept for the government. In 2016, for example, the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (MALR) introduced a smart card program for farmers to automate their access to services. They used those cards to secure what they needed from fertilizers, pesticides, and seeds based on their farmland size to avoid overuse and enhance oversight of the distribution process.

In 2020, the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources, in collaboration with MSA University in Cairo, launched a mobile application that utilizes data from underground soil moisture sensors to help farmers determine when their crops require watering. This technology enabled farmers to use water more efficiently.

In 2021, Minister of Communications and Information Technology Amr Talaat and Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation El-Said El-Qosair announced the soft launch of digital transformation services and the development of the electronic agricultural service system. They introduced the Hudhud mobile app, which uses AI to help farmers identify and treat pests. At press time, there has been no additional news about the project.

In December, the Ministry of International Cooperation announced a partnership with the World Bank to incentivize innovation in climate-smart agriculture. It targets the launch of innovative digital applications tailored to Egypt.

Martien van Nieuwkoop, director of Agriculture and Food Global Practice in the World Bank’s Sustainable Development Practice Group, said the partnership with Egypt would support its green growth path by implementing local solutions focused on climate-smart technology.

In May, the government inaugurated the Future of Egypt agricultural project in the New Delta. According to the State Information Service, the project is the first venture under the broader New Delta Project, covering over 1.05 million feddans to achieve self-sufficiency and exportable agricultural surplus.

Bahaa el Ghanam, executive director of Egypt’s Future Agency for Sustainable Development, said the project “includes a complete analysis of the grains arriving to the silos, their weight, unloading point and the methods of storing them to eliminate any insect infestation, if any, through the Control Rooms.”

Notably, the Future of Egypt project seeks to reclaim about 1.8 million hectares of land by 2030. The project’s key objectives are modernizing irrigation infrastructure, amplifying agricultural production capabilities, and promoting self-sufficiency in key commodities.

Climate-smart

To sustainably improve Egypt’s food security, the government must act quickly in the coming years, as time is not on its side.

According to a 2023 study by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the country’s agricultural performance is declining due to inefficient land use, labor, water, and energy, environmental degradation, and limited access to technology.

That decline will only increase as climate change causes temperatures to rise and rainfall to diminish, and Egypt will face substantial threats to its crop yields by 2050.

It introduces climate-smart agriculture (CSA) as an innovative solution to secure food in Egypt. Mohamed Manssouri, director of the FAO Investment Centre, said the study “shines a light on Egypt’s commitment to climate-smart agriculture by accelerating investment and innovation, promoting ecosystem resilience and improving livelihoods—including for rural communities and small farmers.”

“Climate-smart agriculture is an integrated approach to managing landscapes — cropland, livestock, forests, and fisheries —- that addresses the interlinked challenges of food security and climate change,” said the World Bank.

A 2022 FAO report titled “Towards Climate-Smart Agriculture in Egypt” emphasized that CSA approaches can transform crop and livestock production in a sustainable manner, helping the sector adapt to climate change and contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate-smart crops could prove vital. “Climate-mart Crops are pivotal in bolstering food security, nutrition, and resource sustainability,” said the FAO report.

Abdel Wahab and Ibrahim explained how the UNDP Egypt Accelerator Lab initiated a pilot project introducing CSC quinoa, millet, and panicum, which offer high nutrition, remarkable yields, and resilience to drought.

Expanding adoption of CSA practices and technologies also could bring significant economic returns. “The adoption of CSA practices and technologies can generate ‘triple-wins’ in terms of increasing agricultural productivity and incomes, strengthening people and agrifood systems’ adaptation and resilience to climate change, and climate change mitigation,” according to the FAO study.

However, despite significant promise, Egypt faces roadblocks in embracing climate-smart technologies. The FAO study cited high initial costs and difficulties getting affordable financing as two barriers particularly affecting small farmers.

The study also said Egypt’s small farms and land fragmentation represent other challenges to adopting CSA technologies. “Overcoming these hurdles means continuing to help smallholders access markets and financial services,” it said.

Lastly, the study highlighted the importance of fostering investment in climate-smart policies and sustainable agriculture. That, in turn, can “safeguard Egypt’s food supply, fortify its economy, and enable farmers to generate a greener, more resilient future.”

This article first appeared in July’s print edition of Business Monthly.