(An economic evaluation for the current and prospects of expanding Date palm cultivation in the West Minya region)

Egypt ranks first internationally in terms of Date palm production, with approximately 18%, and 24% of the Arab countries production, with several fruitful Date palm trees exceedingly approximately 16 million. Productivity of Date palm in Egypt reached 1.8 million tons. The study suggested some alternatives for the possibility of cultivating and developing date palms in west Minia region. The results obtained from the sample survey in the west Minia region are clear that there are many positive chances to encourage and increase Date palm cultivation in the region, the most important of which is the first alternative, which is the Medjoul Date palm tree, as the average productivity of the palm tree reached about 60 kg, and in some cases it reaches about 80 kg. This achieved a net yield per feddan amounted  1,030,400 Egyptian pounds in the first alternative of the first model of cultivation and production method, while the average productivity in the second alternative, which is Barhi Date palm trees, reached about 250 kg, achieving a net yield per feddan about 1,635,200 Egyptian pounds. Finally, the average production of one Date palm tree in the third alternative, which is the Siwi Date palm tree, reached about 80 kg, achieving a net return of about 366,080 Egyptian pounds per Fadden. Based on the above-mentioned results, the study concluded that the first alternatives and model are beneficial and depend on the investor’s budget and planning for the agricultural operations, Therefore the first model, which is characterized by an increased number of seedlings per feddan. The study proves that the first alternative was the most profitable model and alternative in comparison with the two other alternatives and models. The study recommended expanding Date palm production and cultivation due to their high economic value and high per-feddan yield. The necessity of paying attention to quality of exported dates and tightening export control for some date exporters and expanding the establishment of pack house for preparing and packaging dates in the areas of west Minia region concentration according to studied scientific methods that take into consideration regarding conditions and technical specifications.