Chile declares agricultural emergency in the region of Arica and Parinacota

Chile declared an agricultural emergency in the region of Arica and Parinacota, in the extreme north of the country, due to the water shortage plaguing the area, Agriculture Minister Esteban Valenzuela announced today, Tuesday.

“We want and need to help agriculture in these times of discontinuous water and fertilizer hikes to support farmers in the region,” the official said in a statement.

Valenzuela explained that this measure would allow access to resources from the Ministry of Agriculture and the regional government to join in with converging funds.

He also announced that the region would be incorporated into the Siembra Por Chile program, which will enable the horticultural sector and the various agricultural stakeholders to access support during the August and September planting season.

The Minister of Public Works of the South American country, Juan Carlos García, explained on Monday that new governance in Chile seeks to ensure the human right to water under the framework of the new Water Code.

Chile has had more than 13 years of water shortage, with over 75% of its territory hit by drought, where 346 communes of the country are in an agricultural emergency.

For this reason, according to information from the Ministry of Agriculture, the government is leading a pioneering resilience program in Latin America so that farmers can adapt to the new environmental conditions.

With information from Xinhua

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