Iran Calls for Joint Farming with Kazakhstan


TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An Iranian agricultural official on Wednesday urged the expansion of agricultural cooperation between Tehran and Astana, saying that the two countries can jointly produce agricultural products.

Hooman Fathi, the director general of Iranian Agricultural Jihad Ministry’s department for international affairs, described as “significant” the cooperation in the production of agricultural products, wheat and oilseeds in particular.

“Those Kazakh companies that cooperate with the Iranian side would be more successful in business,” he said in a meeting with a trade delegation from Kazakhstan in Tehran.

He also asked the Kazakh delegation to make further efforts for the export of agricultural products from Iran in a bid to create a good trade balance between the two countries.

Fathi described as “great” the political will for mutual cooperation at the level of presidents of the two countries, and referred to the promotion of agricultural cooperation as key to putting the will into practice.

Earlier in December, Iranian Minister of Agricultural Jihad Mahmoud Hojjati and his Kazakh counterpart Assylzhan Mamytbekov said there are too many advantages and abundant capacities in both countries' agricultural sector which must be utilized properly to enhance Tehran-Astana cooperation.

At the meeting, Mamytbekov voiced his country’s intention to implement projects for the development of agriculture research centers and development of Iran's irrigation system, and expressed the hope that through transfer of expertise from Iran the said projects will make progress.

Hojjati, for his part, voiced Iran’s readiness for rendering assistance to Kazakhstan in poultry, live-stock breeding and aquatic industry.