A workshop on tropical fruit postharvest management and pest and disease control will be held in Khartoum, Sudan in February 2013, jointly organized by TFNet, The Arab Organisation for Agricultural Development (AOAD), and the Sudan Department of Horticulture.
The workshop was discussed during a meeting between TFNet CEO Yacob Ahmad and AOAD Director General Dr. Tariq Moosa Al-Zadjali on 5 November 2013 at the AOAD headquarters in Khartoum. Other possible projects on improving tropical fruits cultivation in Arab League countries were also discussed.
The Arab Organisation for Agricultural Development (AOAD) was established in 1970 with goal of developing linkages between Arab countries and coordinating all agricultural activities. Countries in the region growing tropical fruits include Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yemen, and Qatar.
At the national level, AOAD assists member countries in developing and enhancing their respective agricultural sectors. At the regional level, AOAD facilitates coordination amongst member states in the agricultural sector, with the aim of achieving a fully integrated Arab economy union, and food self-sufficiency.
Tropical fruits such as bananas, mangoes, pineapples, pomelos, limes and guavas are some of the fruits cultivated in the Arab States. Some technical constraints in producing these fruits including water availability, post-harvest losses and pests and disease need to be further addressed.
Cognizant of the challenges in cultivating tropical fruits in these countries, TFNet plans to collaborate with AOAD to develop the commodity and provide food security with more fruit choices.
