The Coca-Cola Foundation and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) in Egypt have struck an agreement to promote sustainable agriculture and green energy among farmers and rural communities in Luxor.
WFP will implement a two-year program in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (MALR) to establish a model farm using green energy and water-saving techniques to optimize the use of limited land and natural resources, thanks to a contribution from the Coca-Cola Foundation. Furthermore, the model farm will improve farmers’ access to markets and encourage sustainable income through ecologically friendly agriculture.
The program, which aims to benefit approximately 1,000 farmers and their families, focuses on optimizing the efficiency of water available for irrigation in accordance with Egypt’s government goals to shift toward modern irrigation techniques.
“The first collaboration between WFP and The Coca-Cola Foundation advances our organizations’ shared vision for a sustainable and green future,” said Praveen Agrawal, WFP Representative and Country Director in Egypt. “By leveraging 21st-century technologies and advanced agricultural practices, we can empower communities to produce more with less, promoting critical building blocks of efficiency and sustainability on the path to achieving food security for all.”
The Coca-Cola Foundation’s President, Saadia Madsbjerg, said on the program, “The Coca-Cola Foundation has long aspired to build collaboration across organizations and institutions to create a robust network of support and drive collective action, awarding more than US$1.5 billion in grants to support initiatives around the world.” And, by collaborating with WFP, we are fulfilling a purpose to make a difference in global communities by investing in revolutionary ideas that address some of the world’s most serious issues,” she added. “Recently, The Coca-Cola Foundation refocused its efforts to specifically address sustainable access to water and the circular economy, among other causes affecting the communities in which we operate.” It is critical that we combine our efforts to develop and support under-resourced communities in order to stay current in the ever-changing twenty-first century.”
This tried-and-true methodology expands on WFP and MALR’s existing rural development program, which has been shown to increase arable land through land consolidation, cut water usage by 60%, improve irrigation efficiency, and lower costs. Furthermore, the employment of clean energy and water-saving measures has lowered the risk of waterborne infections dramatically, safeguarding up to 60-70 percent of crop production and increasing farmers’ profitability.
