Agriculture Ministry moves to stem drought fears

BEIRUT: Agriculture Minister Akram Chehayeb stressed Monday the importance of developing agricultural infrastructure and solutions to deal with a decrease in rainfall, which is set to affect the quantity and quality of both surface water and groundwater in wells.The decline in rainfall this winter has sparked drought fears in Lebanon, as well as warnings of a water emergency and urgent calls for new solutions to combat scarcity and conserve water at home.

During a meeting with ministry Director-General Louis Lahoud, a delegation from the World Bank headed by Maurice Saade and representatives from the Food and Agricultural Organization, Chehayeb stressed the “united efforts between the different ministries and institutions and departments concerned with agriculture, infrastructure and donors.”

Chehayeb also noted the importance of what has already been done in terms of establishing hill lakes and guiding farmers toward more advanced methods of irrigation.