Farmers complain of lack of alternatives after gov’t ban on growing water-intensive crops

Egyptian farmers are left with no alternatives now that the government has banned the planting of water-intensive crops beyond specified land plots, Mohamed Barghash, a former head of the farmers union tells Al-Monitor. The farmers will either “go to jail or face hunger,” Barghash says, noting that some farmers are “forced to grow rice to counter the salinization of the soil, especially in areas near the Mediterranean.” He says the government should guide farmers to alternative crops. An Irrigation Ministry official countered by noting “Egypt no longer has the luxury of growing crops with high water needs, given the scarcity of our water resources. It is not just about rice; other crops will soon be cut also.”