Situation Analysis of the Agriculture sector in Egypt.
Description
Agriculture is one of the most important economic sectors in Egypt, contributing to about 14% of GDP and employing about 28 % of the working population in 2019. Agriculture is significantly important in Upper Egypt, located to the south of Cairo, where over 55% of employment is agriculture related. The proportion of poverty is estimated to be approximately 25% of the total population in Egypt while the rate is as high as about 52% in the rural area of Upper Egypt.
In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic, which is a global health crisis, has already made devastating impacts on the global economy, both directly and through necessary measures taken by different countries to contain the spread of the virus. These impacts have also casted its shadows on the food and agriculture sector. While the supply of food has held up well to date, in many countries, the measures taken to contain the spread of the virus may have disrupted the supply of agro-food products to markets and consumers, both within and across borders.
JICA Egypt Office is seeking an opportunity for formulating new development program with the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation (MALR) that would involve activities to alleviate the negative impacts of COVID-19 on small-scale farmers, and improving the reachability of the agriculture extension services, through the utilisation of information technologies. However, available information related to the situation of the agriculture sector in Egypt amid the pandemic are limited, thus this survey is to clarify such the situation.
Thus, the purpose of the study was to provide a wide understanding of the situation of small-scale farmers and their households’ members in Egypt resulting from the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and identify the different challenges faced by them.
The objectives of the study were to:
- assess the negative impacts and barriers of COVID 19 on small-scale farmers in the Egyptian agricultural sector
- identify specific recommendations to improve future interventions to alleviate COVID-19 negative impacts on small-scale farmers.
The information generated through the study aimed to serve to guide future interventions designed to alleviate the negative impacts of COVID-19 on small-scale farmers and improve the reachability of the agriculture extension services.
Services
The situation analysis covered Egypt amid the COVID-19 pandemic, starting from the discovery of the first case, until the time of the survey, including a clear description of the actions and countermeasures taken by the Egyptian government to deal with the impacts of the pandemic in general, and in relation to the Agriculture Sector (especially targeting small-scale-farmers including non-landowners).
In terms of the COVID-19 impact on small-scale farmers, the survey looked specifically at:
- Productivity Related Impact
- Behavioral Related Impact
- Labour Related Impacts
For this, the team conducted the following tasks:
- Desk Review: The desk review provided background information on the different aspects of the subject and will be the basis for the development of the research tools for primary data collection.
- Qualitative Survey (32 interviews and 16 FGDs): It included focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with farmers as well as in depth interviews with donors, governmental officials, agriculture cooperatives, retailers and wholesalers.
- Quantitative Survey (200 Questionnaires): It consisted of 200 respondents, 50 in each governorate, where the smallholder farmers (women and men) represent the population unit.
- Data Analysis: Quantitative data was analyzed by SPSS and qualitative data was tabulated.
- Report Writing and Submission: The results of the desk review and field surveys were compiled and integrated to elaborate the findings and the study report.