Jerusalem ? Farmers from the Jewish settlements of the Gaza Strip on Friday signed an agreement to sell most of their greenhouses to a private international fund, which in turn will hand them over to the Palestinian Authority.

The deal, reached just three days before the Israeli evacuation of the 21 settlements of Gaza is to begin, aims to preserve the settlements’ primary agricultural asset for future Palestinian use. That could provide the impoverished territory with a much-needed economic boost following the handover.

The greenhouses use sophisticated techniques that were developed especially for Gaza’s sandy soil and desert-like conditions. Many Palestinians are familiar with the growing methods used in the greenhouses from years spent working in them.

About one-quarter of the greenhouses have been dismantled and moved inside Israel by their owners.

The $14 million deal covers the remaining 800 acres of greenhouses, which are owned by about 450 farmers.

The purchase is being made by the private Economic Cooperation Foundation, whose founders include Yossi Beilin, one of the architects of the 1993 Oslo peace accords between the Israelis and Palestinians.