ECONOMY SERVICE
Created Date: November 23, 2024 04:00
The 2nd phase launch ceremony of the GAP Precision Agriculture program was held in Şanlıurfa. At the ceremony attended by the Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır and the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı, it was announced that the GAP Region will become a center in agricultural technologies. Minister Kacır said at the ceremony that the work for the 2024-28 GAP Action Plan has accelerated and its details will be announced in Şanlıurfa.
Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır announced that they, as the Economy Coordination Board, will share the details of the 2024-2028 GAP Action Plan with the public in Şanlıurfa. Kacır gave the good news that, “In the coming period, a new action plan will be implemented that will enable us to achieve irrigation targets, disseminate sustainable and smart agricultural practices, enable regional agriculture to be a driving factor in the development of the region in a way that will feed future generations, create economic added value in the rural areas and make the region a tourism attraction center.” “I want to give from here,” he said.
INVESTMENT SIZE 1.1 TRILLION TL
Minister Kacır attended the GAP Precision Agriculture 2nd Phase Promotion Ceremony together with the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı. In his speech here, Kacır drew attention to the industrial investments made in the GAP region and said, “We have established 20 OIZs in the last 22 years in nine provinces. We created 360 thousand additional jobs in OIZs. With the investment incentive system, we paved the way for 15 thousand 400 investments with an investment size of 1.1 trillion lira and providing more than 710 thousand qualified employment. “With the climate of trust and strong investment environment we have created in the last 22 years, the cities of Southeastern Anatolia have turned into production bases,” he said.
The highlights of Kacır’s speech were as follows:
INCREASED ITS SHARE IN EXPORTS: The region’s share in the country’s exports increased from 1.8 percent to 5.3 percent in 22 years. These lands, which hosted ancient civilizations, are now becoming the center of economic growth, development and production.
NEW IRRIGATION FIELDS ARE OPENED: In 11 years, we have provided 6.6 billion liras of support to 1,038 projects that will support the versatile development of the GAP Region, from precision agriculture to effective management of water resources, from rural development to tourism. We opened an area of 318 thousand decares to irrigation with the Small-Scale Agricultural Irrigation Program that we launched two years ago to increase the agricultural production potential in the region. As of next year, we will provide employment to 49 thousand citizens and add an area of 52 thousand 500 decares to this.
GAP ENTEGRE 2.0 STARTED: With Organic Agriculture, Agricultural Infrastructure and Rural Development Projects, we brought 172 thousand decares of land into plant production and created brands for 15 products. We have completed the first phase of the “Integrated Rural Development Program”. We also launched the ‘New Generation Integrated Rural Development Program’ (GAP Entegre 2.0).
AMBER HOUSE: We have trained more than 80 thousand farmers to date with the Agricultural Training and Publication Program (TEYAP). We are turning the GAP Region into the food warehouse of our country. In line with the GAP Action Plan, our goal is to increase the irrigable area to 1 million 60 thousand hectares. With the expansion of irrigation areas in the near future, the GAP Region will be the most important guarantor of food security for both our country and the region.
TECHNOLOGY SUPPORTS: 23 people who carry out projects in the field of agriculture in technoparks Our Ge We support the centre. In 22 years, we have provided 6 billion liras of support to 2,925 projects in agriculture within the scope of TÜBİTAK and to 1,357 scientists and young people conducting research in this field.
FUSION CENTER: We have also started to work on creating a decision support mechanism that farmers will actively use by monitoring approximately 200 thousand decares of land with satellite images. Additionally, with the GAP Precision Agriculture Project Fusion Center we established; We train consultants who will guide our farmers to use technology more effectively in agricultural production.
36 INVESTMENT TITLES WERE IDENTIFIED: We have identified 36 investment headings with a total investment amount of 11.8 billion liras, which will constitute a significant leap in the development of nine provinces. “The biggest winner of these qualified investments we will support will undoubtedly be our local people.”
‘GAP’IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION INCREASED 22 TIMES’
Speaking at the Şanlıurfa GAP Precision Agriculture 2nd Phase Promotion Ceremony, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry İbrahim Yumaklı said, “GAP Action Plan It aimed to open 10.6 million decares of land to irrigation. We have now completed two thirds of this. “We aim to complete the rest by 2032,” he said.
Yumaklı emphasized that when the projects carried out in the Euphrates and Tigris sub-basin are completed, an annual contribution of approximately 7 billion dollars to the economy is expected. Yumaklı said, “With this, 1.3 million people will be employed.”
Stating that Gaziantep, Kilis, Adıyaman, Şırnak, Siirt and Batman started to benefit from IPARD supports as a result of their intense negotiations with the EU, Minister Yumaklı continued as follows: “With the investments made in 22 years, there has been a two-fold increase in crop production and the presence of cattle and sheep. In addition, poultry availability increased threefold, aquaculture increased ninefold, and honey production increased sevenfold. GAP “We increased the agricultural product of the region 22 times in 18 years.”
Source: bigpara.hurriyet.com.tr
