Ramallah: Head of the Water Authority, Eng. Mazen Ghunaim, Minister of Agriculture Riyad Atari, and Chairman of Water Users Association, Mohammed Al-Qawasmi signed in the presence of Governor of Jericho, Jihad Abu Al-Asal the agreement of operating well Al- Nuway'imah for agricultural use.

The agreement, which complements the government's plans to support Palestinian targets by identifying the development needs, aims to exploit water from Al- Nuway'imah well for agricultural purposes, helping farmers to irrigation the agricultural lands in Jericho.

The agreement also complements the development work of the Water Authority to support the governorate's citizens by providing additional water resources to the agricultural sector, and hence the allocation of Water Authority to this well, which will contribute significantly to providing farmers' water needs for irrigation.

Eng. Ghunaim pointed out that this agreement is a qualitative shift in the level of the agriculture sector in Palestine, specifically the palm sector, and came as a result of the concerted efforts of the parties involved and in line with the government’s plan to support the Jordan Valley in general and farmers, in particular, to help them face the Israeli plan to build more settlement projects and promote the establishment of illegal Israeli projects in the Palestinian territories.

Eng. Ghunaim added that this agreement reflects a real complementary partnership among ministries and institutions to serve the public interest and facilitate access to water and not to monopolize it, stressing that the implementation of the agreement should begin as soon as possible to reduce Israeli ambitions and actions aimed at plundering Palestinian land.

For his part, Minister of Agriculture Riad Atari stressed that the completion of the agreement today is an affirmation of the principle of partnership and work within a clear system of procedures that will reflect positively on the agriculture sector and that farmers will see the positive impact on the ground soon. He also praised the Water Authority and the crews working to cooperate, overcome obstacles, and work to promote cooperation to achieve the public interest.

The Governor of Jericho, Jihad Abu Al-Asal, also expressed his appreciation for the effort exerted by different parties, which aims to strengthen the resilience of farmers and protect their land, through diligent follow-up on the ground and provide the necessary needs for the development and protection of agriculture.

Under this agreement, agricultural plans and water policies for the agricultural sector will be developed by the Ministry of Agriculture in cooperation with the Water Authority to ensure optimal use of water and the use of modern irrigation systems and methods.

The agreement also included the commitment of the Irrigation Water Users Association to equipping the irrigation network infrastructure from main lines and its supplies from well to beneficiary areas, as well as providing the necessary funds for equipping the well with all equipment, operating Al- Nuway'imah well for agriculture in and around Jericho area under the supervision of the Water Authority, and measuring and determining the quantities of water consumed by the meter installed to ensure the distribution of water fairly, with emphasis on the importance of taking all measures to prevent the flow or theft of water.