United World: Could you please give us a brief presentation of Technofarm?

Mr. Cunningham: Technofarm has been in Libya for three years. It was originally a company formed by several European and Egyptian agriculture entities that came together in Libya. There was a similar format undertaken in Egypt as well. They started with a small project in Benghazi; about 1,200 hectares of irrigation on what could be described as an unusual basis in Libya. The government provided the land, irrigation equipment and the water; Technofarm provided the farm machinery, labor, and all the seeds and fertilizing chemicals; we split the profit. This system worked very well for about two years; the yields went up, the farm was properly developed and both parties were content with the results. In July 2004, when the United States lifted its trade sanctions, a couple of American companies joined Technofarm. I moved here last September and we proceeded to push towards expanding that first model in other places. The first farm is an hour south of Tripoli, an area called Tarhuna; we worked with an area of about 400 hectares last fall, with irrigation machines. We planted it in December and we got what I believe was the highest yield in the country last year. We also took over the management of a small project in Sirte that the Great Man-Made River Authority had been managing on their own since 1999. We took over that farm in April and prepared it for the summer season. We also have a small experimental farm further south of Tripoli, where there is a very deep well; about a thousand meters deep. The water temperature is very high, so we installed two experimental irrigation systems there to see how the plants will support it. I had some experience with this kind of situation in Algeria, so I was rather comfortable with this experiment, which gave very good yields. As a result this farm will now be expanded using that underground water. This is roughly where we stand at this point in time.

We basically have about 2000 hectors of farmland and most of them are under the aforementioned production-sharing agreement with the government. We are currently negotiating for 14,000 hectors in Benghazi, 5000 hectors in Sirte (we won a tender for that). The our small Tarhuna Farm will be expanded by 200 hectors as well. In two years, we should have close to 20,000 hectors overall.

United World: How did the collaboration between Technofarm and GMMRA come about initially?

Mr. Cunningham: It came about three years ago. The main force behind it is the Great Man-Made River project, which is almost completed. Libya hasn't yet taken full advantage of the GMMR Project in terms of farmland development. Several models of irrigation were considered and the success that we have had with our models far exceeded others. I think it takes a lot of courage to invest in the agriculture field in Libya, due to the serious amount of money needed for such projects. I give a lot of credit to our partners for taking that step.

United World: As an American investor, what can you tell others who are interested in tapping into the Libyan economy?

Mr. Cunningham: It's not easy. However, the rewards are worth the effort that you put in. When you come here, you have to be patient and understand that it is not going to be like home; we are guests here and we have to live with the system that's here and make the best out of it. You need to plan accordingly and be careful not to move too fast because things simply don't work that way here. There are a lot of opportunities in the country and I am surprised I have not met any non-oil American investors during my time here so far. You don't see any American companies doing on-the-ground work; there are no American cars, no American food products, nothing American. There is a huge market for us here; it surprises me that no one has bothered to explore it.

United World: What would you say are the most positive surprises you've encountered in doing business in Libya?

Mr. Cunningham: The Libyan people are very good at heart; it's in the right place. In terms of doing business, it has been a long time since they've engaged in it on a wider scale; they don't know how to go about doing it. It's not that they don't want to, it's just that the business culture has been absent for a long time. People tell me that just over four years ago, there were hardly any private stores. It is all relatively new; they have come a long way in a relatively short period of time. Let's take the concept of profit for example; to most Libyans I've come across, they consider it to be the gross revenue, which is not the case of course. They're excited and they want to learn, particularly the younger generation of Libyans. They are basically honest people and are willing to do their best to help.

United World: What have been some of your main challenges as an investor?

Mr. Cunningham: A lot of it relates to the same issues I just mentioned. There is basically a two-decade gap in experience in doing business and they have a lot of catching up to do with the rest of the world. There are a lot of things that need to change to encourage investors to come here, especially administrative rules that are unnerving. Getting a visa is the most basic of problems; it's almost impossible for Americans. I was stuck in Cairo for three weeks this September after going on holiday there, despite the fact that I've been doing business here for a year. Americans are at a disadvantage right now in terms of whom we hire due to the difficulties in getting visas. It can take Europeans 4-5 days to get a visa, whereas it takes an American 4-5 weeks to get one. They are all petty issues but put everything together and it accumulates to a big hurdle for potential American investors. I was lucky because I came through an existing foreign company. I can imagine it being very difficult for an American investor to start from scratch.

United World: Have you experienced first-hand the benefits of Law no. 5, which was introduced to encourage foreign investment?

Mr. Cunningham: Absolutely. We have no taxes, no import duties, etc. We would not be here without all that. The basic law is good, it's the implementation that's going wrong. If for example you approach the Libyan Foreign Investment Board and ask for a list of procedures to meet an end goal, there's nothing. First you see a person in some office, which can take up to two weeks, then you go see another person and so on and so forth; nothing works in parallel. It is frustrating sometimes but that's the way it is. We could make our own suggestions on how to do things but this is very much a top-down society where you don't want to attract too much attention to yourself; occasionally you will come across a person who is ready to make that extra step and implement a change. My advice to foreign investors is that they should be aware that they cannot change the system and be prepared to deal with it the way it is. I dislike some of the attitudes I have come across from foreign investors who constantly complain; if you don't like the way things are done then go back to work, where you came from. It doesn't do anyone any good to be arrogant in foreign territory; it reflects a bad image on all foreign investors and Libyans will consequently approach you with an attitude. You can push and you can get mad at them but get mad as a friend rather than an arrogant person.

United World: What is your perspective on the Great Man-Made River project?

Mr. Cunningham: It represents a lot of things but in terms of agriculture, it's a whole new field here. Libya was famous for big agriculture projects since the 1960s; all the projects were in the far-south in the desert, which are difficult to reach and pose difficulties for transport towards the coastal areas where people live. There was only one season per year for production and it was almost too hot to produce anything during the summer. However, there was this huge pool of water in the depths of the desert and the idea of bringing it to the coast where the people are is one of the main forces behind it. What it means in terms of agriculture is that with that water the whole agriculture system in Libya is going to change. It is still too early to predict the extent of the change, as mentioned earlier several models are still being tried to determine how best to make use of that water. In the next ten years, I see a huge increase in our commercial size activities. I have heard that 90% of the food here is imported because there is no processing due to shortage in production. There is no dairy, there is very few processed food manufacturers etc. Therefore, if this can be resolved with that water source, not only will it increase production but there were also be a lot of raw materials built on these and manufacturing processes on top of that; right now it is impossible because poultry can't get the chicken feed, there is no dairy because there are no cows, no cooking oil because there is an absence of seed crushers. The whole sector is wide-open. Our goal is to have enough area to produce enough crops that will allow us to get in to the added value and manufacturing as well. We can then control our production with the manufacturing requirements in the future. There is plenty of room for competition. We have a lot on our plate for the next two years, so I'm not worried about it.

United World: What message would you like to convey to our audience?

Mr. Cunningham: Libya is not the Middle East; that is an important point. People tend to categorize it in the same place as other Arab nations, and it isn't. Libya is different and it exceeded my expectations in terms of security and acceptance of Americans. There are no guns around, no crime and people are very excited that Americans are coming back in the country. The people here have always liked Americans and in all my experiences abroad, Libya would rank in the top five in terms of our acceptance here. Overall, there is a lot that foreigners can bring in to Libya, not only in the agriculture sectors but other businesses as well; there's no real retail here, no shopping centers, no international fast-food chains, no American cars (which people here love by the way). I am really surprised there aren't more Americans trying to invest in libya

United World: Thank you very much for your comments.

Mr. Cunningham: Thank you.