Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- A meeting was held at the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan between Minister Jamshid Khodjaev and Italian Ambassador Agostino Pinna. The current state and prospects for cooperation in the agricultural sector of the two countries were discussed.

Agostino Pinna noted the dynamics of development of cooperation on agricultural issues between the two countries, cooperation between government agencies, as well as the great interest of the Italian private sector in the Uzbek market. It is also necessary to continue the positive trend of increasing the turnover of fruits and vegetables and food products, in particular through GSP +. In this regard, the Italian side called for active participation in agricultural exhibitions in Italy. 

The minister spoke about the creation of olive plantations, the import of fruit tree seedlings to Uzbekistan and a joint project to grow saffron. 

Our republic has just begun to create professional olive plantations. In particular, only this year 50 hectares of olive plantations were planted in Surkhandarya region. Work is underway with relevant organizations in Italy to develop scientific activities in olive growing in Uzbekistan.

“At the end of November 2021, a delegation of the Italian National Consortium of Agricultural Nurseries (CIVI Italia) and leading “in-vitro” laboratories in Europe visited Uzbekistan,” said Minister of Agriculture Jamshid Khodjaev. – We plan to import seedlings of new varieties of fruit trees from Italy, which will become the basis for the subsequent creation of gardens in Uzbekistan. Work is underway to create a joint demonstration nursery with CIVI Italia.

In 2020, a joint venture was established in Jizzakh region for the production, processing of saffron products and its further export. In 2021, 20 million saffron bulbs were imported from Italy, which were planted on 155 hectares and yielded about 1.2 tons.

During the meeting, the parties noted the positive dynamics of cooperation in the field of agricultural science together with the Center for Knowledge, Innovation and Services in Agriculture (AKIS)

Council for Agricultural Research (CREA), and also discussed the issue of cooperation between the Center for Knowledge and Innovation in Agriculture and the University of Milan.

As a result of the negotiations, further measures were identified for the development of bilateral cooperation, and it was also agreed to hold the next meeting in May 2022 to discuss and monitor the implementation of the agreements reached.

nstruction. This undertaking supports the Government of Uzbekistan’s goal to help children and youth prepare for life through quality education and life-long learning.