Desert Research Center organized a workshop entitled “The Importance of Succulent and Cactus Plants in Achieving Sustainable Development Goals,” in cooperation with the Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands (ACSAD).
The workshop was opened by Dr. Ghada Hegazy, Vice President of DRC for Research and Studies, on behalf of Dr. Hossam Shawky, President of DRC, and was attended by a select group of researchers, specialists from several Egyptian universities and research centers.
Dr. Ghada explained that the Center is continuing, for the second consecutive year, to support the cultivation of the smooth prickly pear variety obtained from ACSAD, following the success of trials conducted at the Center’s research stations in several governorates. She added that cultivation is being expanded at El-Qantara Sharq Research Station this year, emphasizing the importance of expanding the cultivation of such plants in supporting sustainable development and enhancing food security in desert regions.
On the sidelines of the workshop, participants visited an exhibition of prickly pear products, including food products, nutritional supplements, cosmetics and animal feed, where their nutritional and economic value and opportunities for benefiting from them were reviewed.
