Food Security in Arab Mena Countries

Abstract

Arab countries have a worsening food shortage and a deficit in agricultural trade. They have become some of the world’s largest grain importers. They also rely on imports of sugar and vegetable oil. At the same time, Arab countries have enormous manpower resources and excellent climate and soil conditions for fruit and vegetable production, large quantities of which are imported by EU countries. On the other hand, thanks to the increased mechanization and consolidation of farms, EU countries can provide competitively priced supplies of cereals, sugar, and vegetable oils, which are imported in large volumes by Arab countries. Food security improvement (a prerequisite for political stability) will be possible in the Arab countries, given a genuine not merely declarative integration of agricultural production, processing, and trade between countries on both shores of the Mediterranean Sea. As land resources, know-how, and capital are in abundance in the Mediterranean region, it is capable of providing an adequate level of food security. This can even change the region from a food deficit area into a leading exporter of agriculture products that could address the demographic explosion that is anticipated in coming decades. Such a result could be only achieved through real political determination in bringing about genuine cooperation in agricultural production and trade in the region. Unfortunately, giving the current economic crisis, ongoing conflicts in Syria and Libya and other sources of instability in the region an adequate Mediterranean compromise in the field of agriculture will not be easy to reach.