Egypt launches “Productive Villages” initiative to expand rural industrialisation and jobs

BRICS countries and their partner nations are placing sustainable rural development at the heart of their cooperation agenda, accelerating the modernisation of agriculture by promoting localised rural production, fostering enterprises and creating jobs.

China has officially released the action plan for new types of agricultural business entities to improve quality and efficiency and boost income for smallholder farmers, which explicitly supports local authorities in guiding farmers to develop family farms of a moderate scale that are green and efficient, reports  China Daily, a partner of TV BRICS. The plan proposes the establishment of a digital service platform to connect farmers directly with consumers, logistics companies and financial institutions whilst simultaneously providing value-added services such as weather alerts, product traceability and agricultural technical advice. Local governments will implement differentiated fiscal and tax support for family farms at various stages of development and encourage agricultural operators to collaborate with universities and research institutes to promote new varieties, technologies, equipment and business models.

According to ANTARA, Indonesia has launched a plan for 5,000 export-orientated villages, with the first pilot phase focusing on Arabica coffee production in West Java Province whilst also planning to export speciality agricultural products such as vanilla, candlenuts and palm sugar. Indonesia’s Ministry of Villages and Development of Disadvantaged Regions has signed an agreement with a non-governmental organisation to assist in identifying target export markets and to provide a digital application with geolocation features, helping overseas buyers gain a clear understanding of the resources available in each village. Furthermore, the Ministry plans to provide rural areas with clean drinking water, electricity and telecommunications services to lay a solid foundation for development.

The Zimbabwean government is fully implementing a rural industrialisation strategy, with the core initiative being the construction of 35,000 rural business units nationwide, including units attached to vocational training centres, as reported by  Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC News), a TV BRICS partner. Taking the village of Igava in Eastern Mashonaland as an example, the Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa Youth Service and Vocational Training Centre has successfully implemented vegetable cultivation and aquaculture projects: it has harvested a total of 12,000 cabbages and released 8,000 fish fry whilst also signing exclusive supply agreements with retail channels, effectively boosting community income and local market supply.