Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed stressed the need to ensure food security and increase export trade through boosting agricultural productivity.
The premier has today launched the Agriculture and Science exhibition at Science Museum in Addis Ababa under the theme “From the Lab to the Field.”
During the occasion, he said Ethiopia is amongst top African countries in coffee, wheat, livestock and recently honey production, adding that due attention should be given to quality production so as to gain foreign earnings.
“All these have not yet transformed towards addressing our problems through exporting and obtaining foreign earnings. To transform that this exhibition greatly help see ways on how to enhance productivity, link production and market, and making our products favorable for sales,” Abiy elaborated.
The Premier emphasized the need to focus on innovative science and technology to transform the agricultural sector.
Noting that agriculture is the foundation for existence of human beings, he stressed the need to support the sector with the necessary technologies with a view to boost productivity and export trade.
Agriculture and Science exhibition inaugurated today plays pivotal contribution to strengthen the development of the sector as it demonstrates the links between agricultural development with information technologies and mechanization, he underlined.
“As we all know, Ethiopia’s population 30 years ago was below 50 million now it is over 100 million while its land and water remains the same. Unless we enhance productivity of the land that our production will not be enough to the increasing population,” Abiy underscored.
Abiy called all to visit the Agriculture and Science exhibition that will be open for public viewing for consecutive weeks starting tomorrow.
The exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with Ethio Telecom, aims at promoting the role of technologies in transforming the agricultural sector and improving production and productivity in a sustainable manner.
The exhibition is expected to create awareness among farmers and pastoralists, youth, students, researchers as well as investors on the role of science and technology to improve production and productivity and realize sustainable development.
Source: Ethiopian News Agency