Mr Gilad gave the remarks in Accra yesterday during an event organised by the Economic and Trade Mission Embassy of Israel in Ghana to foster partnerships and business relations between Israel and Ghana.

It was on the theme, “Bridging innovation and growth in vegetable production and export.

“I believe that Israel can offer some solutions that are relevant to some of your challenges. Whether we are talking about drip irrigation or greenhouses as a challenge in the field of agriculture,” he said.

The Israel Ambassador to Ghana said the event was Israel’s way of help­ing Ghana to address issues of main concern to Ghana’s economy such as tackling climate change challenges and increasing food security.

The Ambassador announced plans to collaborate with Ghana’s Ministry of Agriculture to develop a compre­hensive work plan for 2025 aimed at improving the agricultural system in the country.

For his part, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Eric Opoku, out­lined the government’s commitment to supporting the vegetable sector, includ­ing initiatives to promote greenhouse farming, improved irrigation systems, and export-driven agribusiness invest­ments.

He praised Israel’s success in agriculture, despite its arid climate and limited natural resources, and expressed his desire for the country to learn from Israel’s expertise and lever­age cutting-edge technology to boost productivity and improve quality.

“Moreover, collaborations such as the one we are witnessing today be­tween the Israeli Economic and Trade Mission to Ghana and VEPEAG rein­force our vision for a sustainable and thriving vegetable industry,” he said.

Mr Opoku called on stakeholders to explore meaningful collaborations and take advantage of the knowledge and opportunities presented to trans­form the country’s vegetable produc­tion and export landscape.

The President of the Vegetable Producers and Exporters Association of Ghana (VEPEAG), Dr Felix Mawu­li Kamassah, emphasised the need for innovative solutions to address the challenges facing the agriculture sector and was optimistic that Israel’s expertise in agriculture would promote the agenda.

He highlighted the importance of resilience in agriculture, citing the impact of last year’s climate-related drought, which resulted in significant crop losses.

The president noted that Israel’s innovative approaches to irrigation, greenhouse farming, and crop produc­tion could help mitigate the effects of climate change and improve agricultur­al productivity.

The Deputy Chief Executive Offi­cer of Ghana Export Promotion Au­thority (GEPA), Mr Raymond Rashid Kramer, said vegetable export sector has recorded a significant increase in earnings, with GEPA reporting $38 million in exports for the sector alone.