Hargeysa, Somaliland, December 22, 2007 (SL Times) – The Somaliland minister of Agriculture, Aden Ahmed Elmi opened on Sunday in Hargeysa a training course for 50 candidates for the Somaliland Farmer Feeding schools.

The training course which is being conducted jointly by the Somaliland ministry for Agriculture and the World Food Organisation, FAO, will last for five days.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Minister, Ahmed Elmi encouraged the participants to fully take part in the course and learn and share their knowledge. Ahmed Elmi stated that it is the goal of Somaliland to provide sufficient locally produced commodities to sustain and develop the agriculture sector of the nation's economy.

Ahmed Elmi also stated that it’s the intention of both his ministry and FAO to increase the numbers of such courses for Somaliland's agricultural instructors and teachers for the coming year.

The head of the FAO office in Hargeysa, Mohamed Jama Gahair also spoke at the opening ceremony and congratulated the people and the government of Somaliland for their continued emphasis on agricultural development which he described as the foundation of a national economy.

Also attending the meeting was Sultan Aden Farah who spoke of the importance of education in improving the lives of all Somalilanders.

Omar Mohamed Farah contributed to this report in Hargeysa

Source: Somaliland Times