Madinah: According to recent statistics issued in a report from the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture branch in Madinah, the date production in the Madinah Region for the past year reached a remarkable 97.9 million kilograms, with a value exceeding SAR948,510,913.

The dates, which are of 28 varieties and known for their nutritional and economic value, were cultivated on more than 26,000 farms in the region.

The report, which was responsible for monitoring date quantities in the region during 2023, highlighted that Ajwa and Sukkari dates were the top producers, yielding over 20.7 million kilograms. Safawi dates followed with a production of 5,576,647 kilograms, while Sagai and Berni dates surpassed 6.3 million kilograms. Barhi, Mabroom, Medjool, and Amber dates collectively reached a production volume of 6.2 million kilograms.

The report emphasized the continuous presence of the branch's teams, who work tirelessly to inspect quantities, conduct supervisory tours, provide guidance, and ensure the disposal of dates unsuitable for human consumption. They efficiently manage the entry of over 89,000 vehicles transporting dates from the region's farms and other farms across the Kingdom into the market.

Permits to send 2,052 date consignments, with a volume exceeding 41.5 million kilograms, through Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz International Airport in Madinah were also issued during 2023; the Saudi dates were received by more than 63 countries, including England, Indonesia, China, Türkiye, the Comoros, Jordan, Uganda and Malaysia.

The ministry's branch in Madinah strives to support production through holding training programs and workshops for farmers. It also allocates and prepares sites both in Saudi Arabia and abroad for exporters to meet the needs of the local and global market through the 8.3 million palm trees hosted by grown in the region, thus contributing to increasing national exports of dates and their products and highlighting the palm and date sector, a key contributor to the economy.

At a value of more than SAR7.5 billion, the palm and date sector represents 12% of the total agricultural output in the Kingdom.

The Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture has adopted many initiatives and strategic plans to raise the quality of the sector's production, of which is establishing a specialized centre concerned with date palms and their development to contribute to achieving the agriculture strategy in line with the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030.