On Sept. 24th, 2015, the Ambassador of Israel to India, Mr. Daniel Carmon hosted an event at his residence to celebrate three occasion:
I. launch of the third phase of the Indo-Israel Agricultural Project (IIAP), further strengthening and widening the bilateral agricultural development cooperation between the two countries.
II. inauguration of the ‘IIP Movie - A Growing Partnership’, that will be circulated to all the Indo-Israel Centres of Excellence and further to the Indian farmers.
III. bid farewell to Mr. Sanjeev Chopra, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Mission Director, Mission for Integrated Development for Horticulture (MIDH).
The Joint Agriculture Project, the Indo-Israel Agriculture Project (IIP), implemented by MASHAV, MIDH and partnering states, has become a strong platform for achieving the national goals, such as diversification of crops, increased productivity and optimizing use efficiency of resources. In January 2015, India and Israel signed the joint agreement on the sidelines of the 'Vibrant Gujarat' summit. The agreement was signed by Israel's Agriculture Minister Yair Shamir and Indian Minister of State for Agriculture Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai Kundariya.
The Indo-Israeli Agriculture Project is based on the concept of establishing Centers of Excellence which provide a platform for a rapid transfer of technology to the farmers with the aim of increasing productivity and improving the quality of produce.
The first stage of the Indo-Israeli Agricultural Cooperation Project started in 2008 following the signing of a three-year Action Plan based on a Government to Government Agreement. The plan was later on extended to include the 2012-2015 period.
It was established that the implementing partners will be MIDH – Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture under the Ministry of Agriculture of India and MASHAV- Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Ambassador Carmon:
"Agriculture is one of the main pillars of Israel-India relations and we are about to enter the 3rd phase of this agreement that will expand our cooperation even further. We're working with India in Agriculture since 2006 when both countries signed a cooperation agreement that today includes 26 centers in 9 states, with full partnership between MIDH and MASHAV, Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation. The aim of Indo-Israel Centers of Excellence ,spread all over India, is to ensure food security- increase productivity and improve the quality of produce”