The president of the Almeria Provincial Council, Javier A. García, visited the headquarters of the Official College of Agricultural Engineers this morning to hold a working meeting with its president, Fernando Paniagua. Accompanied by the Deputy for Agri-Food Promotion, María Luisa Cruz, they discussed possible lines of joint collaboration to continue helping agricultural engineers in the province and to promote this profession among schoolchildren in Almería.
The President of the Provincial Council emphasised his personal ties to this productive fabric and highlighted the importance of the 1,500 members of the association who, with their work, are a key element in ensuring that Almeria can continue to be the vegetable garden of Europe and guarantee top quality production.
Javier A. García thanked them for the advice they provide directly to farmers and the important role they play in carrying out the projects where the health that we export to the whole of Europe is produced.
COITAAL, although it started out in the 1950s depending on Granada, has managed, since 1978, when it was formed as an independent association, to become one of the national benchmarks for official associations.
“We want to strengthen ties with the official and professional associations in the province because they are the ones who give a voice to the people of Almeria who get up every day and make the province of Almeria great with their work”, explained Javier A. García.
Among the services provided by COITAAL to its members are training, technical advice, work visas, employment exchange, technical and tax advice, mutual insurance… During the pandemic, they have continued with their activities in person and online.
One of the initiatives put forward by the president of the Association was a project to promote the vocation for this profession among young people in Almeria with conferences and workshops in the schools of the province.
At the same time, the president of the Provincial Council highlighted all the work that the Provincial Institution has put on the table in agricultural matters such as initiatives in favour of rural hygiene, actions in the field of roads, agri-food promotion or in the improvement of water. In this regard, the president took an interest in and participated in the COITAAL course on Water Administration: Irrigation Community II.
This training action will be held online, from 7 to 17 March, and arises from the growing scarcity of water resources, where it is necessary to have a thorough knowledge of their management. The Colegio Oficial de Ingenieros Técnicos Agrícolas de Almería is committed to specific training on this pressing issue in the southeast of Spain.