Head of MASHAV Israel Concludes 7-Day Visit to India, Deepening Partnership in Agriculture & Water

Ambassador Eynat Shlein, Head of MASHAV- Israel's Agency for International Development Cooperation, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Israel, concluded an official visit to India from June 10 to June 16, 2022. This visit aimed to further strengthen Israel-India's strategic partnership and development cooperation in the fields of agriculture and water.

Ambassador Eynat Shlein said, “India is a strong, strategic partner of Israel. The two most significant pillars of our growing relations are cooperation in agriculture and water, which was the focus during my visit to India. These two fields are so important that out of the 6 resident experts that Mashav posted around the world, 2 are based in India.”

She further added, “We are keen to continue and expand our cooperation with all our partners in India as we continue enhancing the strategic partnership between our two nations. Currently, we have 29 fully-active Indo-Israeli Centers of Excellence in different parts of India, which are benefiting millions of Indian farmers on a daily basis. Thirteen more such centers are in the pipeline. Gradually these centers will be expanded into Villages of Excellence in partnership with local state governments, which will further prove beneficial for larger populations.”

During the visit, Ambassador Eynat Shlein toured Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan. She met with senior government officials, and local farmers and also visited the Indo-Israeli Centers of Excellence that have been established under the framework of the Indo-Israel Agricultural Project (IIAP).

Ambassador Shlein held a bilateral meeting with Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister, Uttar Pradesh. Both sides had an extensive discussion about enhancing the existing cooperation and future joint projects in water management and agriculture.

One of the main highlights of this visit was the signing of a joint declaration between the State of Israel and the Irrigation and Water Resources Department, Government of Haryana, India in the field of integrated water resources management and capacity building. As part of this joint declaration, MASHAV will share knowledge, capacity building and Israeli technologies for the development of Haryana in the water management sector.

During the visit, Ambassador Eynat Shlein also met with senior leaders from the Department of Agriculture & Horticulture, Government of Rajasthan.

In Delhi, Ambassador Shlein held discussions with Economic Relations officials at the Ministry of External Affairs about continuing dialogues between both nations on development cooperation. She also visited the office of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, Ministry of Jal Shakti to discuss various areas of cooperation in the water sector.

A ‘Shalom Club Meet’ was organized, where Ambassador Shlein shared her vision with MASHAV alumni from India. These alumni have received training in Israel in various courses such as water, agriculture, health, women empowerment and more.  During the meeting, the alumni exchanged ideas and shared their experiences in Israel.