Karam Thawabteh

Mr. Amir Baboun

8thB Agriculture
October 23rd, 2022

Arab Countries in Terms of Agricultural Production

Agriculture plays an important role in the global economy, and agriculture accounts for 4% of

global production. According to statistics from the World Bank, agriculture employs 33% of the

volume of labor in the world, and Africa’s economy depends on agricultural production. Agriculture

in African countries accounts for more than a third of local gross production and 70% of their work

in the field of agriculture.

In the first place for agricultural production comes Egypt, where agriculture represents 15% of the

total output, and the value of agriculture in Egypt is (28 billion dollars) per year, and the percentage

of workers in Egypt from the population represents 25%, meaning (9 million) workers. Egypt is

characterized by a lot of agricultural lands that fill its country, streets, and areas, and because it

contains the waters of the Nile River, which makes the land fertile. The most important Egyptian

crops Egypt produces are a number of agricultural crops, the most prominent of which can be:

cotton, grains, and sugar cane. Legumes such as; beans. fruit like; Citrus, and grapes. Vegetables

such as tomatoes.

The second place in agricultural production is Algeria, and in Algeria agriculture contributes 12% of

the total income. It is from the agricultural sector that (21%) and more of the population of this

region live. In Algeria, the agricultural value of agricultural production is estimated at (22 billion

dollars) per year. The area of agriculture in Algeria is (42.4 million hectares), which represents the

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total area of the country (18%).

Saudi Arabia ranks third in agricultural production. Saudi Arabia has improved agricultural

production in the shortest possible time. It had the ability to outperform many Arab countries, and

the value of Saudi Arabia's agricultural production was 16 billion dollars a year.

Morocco is basically characterized by its green agricultural nature. The climate of Morocco is very

suitable for agriculture. Agriculture has a very important role in the economy of Morocco. As many

as one million hectares may be cultivated. Agriculture in Morocco represents a great part of the

country’s exports, and the volume of agricultural production in Morocco has reached ($14.2 billion)

The area of agricultural area in Sudan has reached (2,505,810) km.

In Sudan, agriculture is one of the most important pillars of the economy, and in the gross domestic

product, agriculture contributes (50%), and about (80%) of Sudanese work in agriculture, and

agriculture has cost Sudan amounts to (12.7 billion dollars).

Iraq ranks sixth in agricultural production in the Arab world, and every Iraqi has a share of

agricultural output, so his share is equivalent to (1,177 dollars), yet the individual does not exceed

his share in the Arab world (298 dollars) for the year.

For the Emiratis, agriculture is an old activity, and they use new technology in production processes.

In the Emirates, 200,000 acres of land are cultivated, and this production costs up to 4.5 billion

dollars per year.

The following table shows the annual agricultural production figures in Arab countries:

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 Country Cereals Wheat Barley Maize Rice Vegetables Fruits Greenfodders # Cattles # Sheep # Goats # Camles # Chickens Fishes
Prod. Prod. Prod. Prod. Prod. Prod. Prod. Prod. Heads Heads Heads Heads Heads Prod.
1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/MT 1000/Head 1000/Head 1000/Head 1000/Head Million/birds 1000/MT
Jordan 95.20 30.00 25.00 10.00 0.00 1,341.17 359.96 97.83 77.13 2,997.41 701.38 12.84 29.73 2.2
United Arab Emirates 6.71 0.00 0.00 6.71 0.00 319.20 355.01 228.23 105.94 2,205.46 2,437.19 461.79 24.67 76.2
Bahrain 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 19.51 21.34 27.68 7.67 62.66 25.70 1.11 9.84 15.0
Tunisia 1,536.54 1,042.68 465.39 0.00 0.00 7,545.35 1,629.87 2,490.00 645.13 6,370.84 1,163.28 237.52 92.66 130.8
Algeria 5,633.45 3,876.88 1,647.75 6.37 0.23 8,775.91 5,006.10 3,462.95 1,780.59 29,428.93 4,986.12 416.52 138.58 104.8
Comoros 42.69 0.00 0.00 7.18 35.51 5.77 26.69 0.00 50.81 121.18 121.18 0.00 0.55 17.6
Djibouti 0.02 0.00 0.00 0.02 0.00 41.49 3.46 0.00 300.33 469.33 514.94 70.89 0.00 2.2
Saudi Arabia 1,344.89 534.00 627.98 47.64 0.00 1,371.36 2,462.38 0.00 567.04 9,419.69 3,711.16 492.85 196.99 142.9
Sudan 5,630.40 726.40 0.00 100.00 32.00 4,134.70 3,429.15 2,192.71 31,489.00 40,896.00 32,032.00 4,895.00 50.02 50.8
Syrian Arab Republic 6,359.48 3,085.10 3,053.12 215.31 0.00 2,302.02 2,308.86 162.80 788.32 14,557.66 1,844.20 39.73 18.50 6.3
Somalia 184.19 1.04 0.00 75.00 1.15 117.86 201.62 0.00 4,232.41 11,687.42 11,466.77 7,243.79 3.72 30.0
Iraq 6,908.55 4,343.47 1,513.47 310.00 574.71 1,777.22 1,638.48 87.02 1,978.74 6,693.74 1,328.80 91.20 50.07 62.3
Oman 17.08 3.62 1.90 8.92 0.00 756.11 424.94 1,698.71 404.85 617.39 2,348.28 273.49 4.91 580.2
Palestine 58.93 34.37 15.33 8.29 0.00 481.76 86.35 10.17 31.22 759.75 183.14 2.00 11.23 4.5
Qatar 2.41 1.40 0.23 0.62 0.00 64.79 27.35 619.20 41.75 1,065.14 435.99 115.30 9.71 17.1
Kuwait 17.86 0.02 2.73 15.12 0.00 331.81 110.98 45.95 30.40 687.71 212.17 11.83 54.64 3.2
Lebanon 165.44 130.00 32.00 3.00 0.00 799.38 871.17 8.33 85.86 455.84 521.22 0.13 73.20 3.6
Libya 270.01 140.00 70.00 3.61 0.00 932.63 398.23 688.48 229.89 7,562.22 2,663.80 66.67 36.55 32.4
Egypt 24,125.51 9,000.00 100.44 7,440.00 6,690.00 17,790.35 13,154.40 11,034.52 4,898.89 5,132.11 3,462.74 119.89 169.08 2,038.9
Morocco 4,220.85 3,080.00 1,019.00 115.00 64.60 5,235.97 6,721.30 15,194.00 3,328.00 21,591.00 5,993.00 60.81 208.63 1,477.5
Mauritania 480.43 8.64 1.57 16.00 383.00 8.51 25.00 0.00 1,932.70 11,153.52 7,539.38 1,500.97 4.68 720.8
Yemen 679.97 100.33 26.93 40.00 0.00 664.30 1,014.04 1,030.74 1,413.41 8,762.44 8,366.63 432.68 69.06 131.3

What if the Arab countries united:

If the Arabs were allowed to unite in one state, the following would result directly from

this union:

First: The area of one Arab state will be 13 million square kilometers, which is second

only to Russia in the world, and its coasts will extend over the most important seas,

oceans, and seaports in the world. Mandab, the Suez Canal, and the Strait of Gibraltar.

Second: The population of the new Arab state will be 410 million, which is third in the

world after China and India.

Third: For the agricultural area, the arable area in the Arab countries is more than

600,000 square kilometers. This puts it in sixth place globally, behind the United States,

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India, China, Russia, and Brazil that the reclamation of agricultural lands. In Sudan alone,

with an area equivalent to 84 million hectares, will suffice to produce 760 million tons of

wheat annually, 370 million cows, 410 million sheep, and 830 million head of the

chicken. The Arab countries are among the largest importers of food, with the Arab food

gap currently amounting to about 42 billion dollars annually, and it includes grain, sugar,

oils, and meat. The percentage of self-sufficiency in the cereals, sugar, and oils groups in

the Arab countries is only 56%, 34%, and 28%, respectively. The issue of food in the

Arab world can be faced as a group in a better way than confronting it individually, given

that the Arab agricultural economic resources of land, water, human, capital,

technological and administrative resources are not balanced within each Arab country

separately, while they are balanced within the Arab world as a whole. And that through

coordination, cooperation, and Arab agricultural integration, the available Arab

agricultural economic resources can be exploited for optimal use, and Arab countries can

become not only self-sufficient in food, but also net exporters of it. Moreover, Arab

agricultural coordination, cooperation, and integration are in the interest of all Arab

countries and not in the interest of a specific Arab state or group. Contemporary regional

and international crises have made it clear that funds are not a substitute for food, as

funds do not guarantee access to food by import in times of regional and international

crises. Coordination, cooperation, and Arab agricultural integration require coordination

between agricultural development strategies, policies, plans, programs, and projects in

Arab countries and benefiting from the principle of specialization in production in

accordance with the comparative and competitive advantages in each country, as well as

establishing joint Arab agricultural investment programs and projects in the areas of

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agricultural production, animal, poultry, fish, irrigation and other requirements.

Agricultural production, agricultural manufacturing, transportation, storage, marketing,

and agricultural trade. It helps in achieving this by facilitating the flow and exchange of

agricultural products between Arab countries without hindrances within the framework of

the Greater Arab Free Trade Area.

Fourth: The total national income will be a little more than 6 trillion dollars, which is

third in the world after the United States and China. The United States and the European

Union, with a total area of 13 million and 500 thousand square kilometers, make the Arab

world second in terms of area after Russia.

The following table shows the agriculture production figures and numbers that Arab

countries can have if they are united:

ITEM Prod./Heads Arab Land

     
CEREALS 1000MT 57771.85
WHEAT 1000MT 26124.66
BARLEY 1000MT 8626.03
MAIZE 1000MT 8449.92
SORGHUM AND MILLET 1000MT 6552.08
RICE 1000MT 7781.19
ROOTS & TUBERS 1000MT 17164.72
POTATOES 1000MT 15911.13
Other ROOTS & TUBERS 1000MT 1137.39
SUGAR CROPS 1000MT 22712.30
OIL SEED 1000MT 10407.19
VEGETABLES 1000MT 54817.168
FRUITS 1000MT 40276.68
DATES 1000MT 6942.26
FIBERS 1000MT 673.72
GREEN FODDERS 1000MT 39079.32
Cattle 1000Heads 54420.08
Sheep 1000Heads 182601.30

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 Goats 1000Heads 92059.07
Camels 1000Heads 16546.99
Poultry Million/Heads 1257.01
Fish 1000MT 5651.44