She stressed that the state is working to expand its agricultural investments abroad

Al Muhairi: The UAE is a global center for food trade

Al Muhairi and Al Zeyoudi during the World Federation of Wholesale Markets Conference.

Photography: Najeeb Mohamed

The Minister of Climate Change and Environment, Maryam Al Muhairi, said that the UAE has become a global center for trade in food and agricultural products, with billions of dollars worth of food passing through it annually, noting that the UAE is expanding its investments in the food and agricultural sector abroad, and continues to support its trade relations with various countries to support the continued flow of food.

Al Muhairi added, in a speech during the World Federation of Wholesale Markets Conference, organized by Abu Dhabi Ports yesterday, that the UAE is working to diversify its food import markets to ensure the continuous availability of food supplies, as well as providing many advantages to foreign companies that invest in various sectors. In addition to providing a safe and supportive investment climate with low operating costs.

She pointed out that the National Food Security Strategy provided a firm basis for the UAE to smoothly deal with any global crisis related to the food sector and emergencies.

For his part, Minister of State for Foreign Trade, Dr. Thani Al Zeyoudi, said that the UAE imports about 90% of its needs annually, with an estimated $25 billion annually.

Al Zeyoudi stressed the importance of supply chains and enhancing their flexibility to support consumers, noting that the UAE ranked first in the food security index in the region.

In turn, the Undersecretary of the Department of Economic Development in Abu Dhabi, Rashid Al Balushi, said that the contribution of the agricultural sector to the emirate's GDP amounted to 15.3 billion dirhams in 2021, explaining that, according to the strategy for the development of this sector, it is expected that the contribution will rise to 19.3 billion dirhams in 2025 with a growth rate of 28%.

Al Balushi pointed out that the agricultural sector based on modern technologies is a priority for the Abu Dhabi government.

Kizad Asset Management

The CEO of Khalifa Economic Zones in Abu Dhabi - Kizad Group, Mohammed Al-Khidr Al-Ahmad, said in a press statement that, on the sidelines of the World Federation of Wholesale Markets Conference, yesterday, the establishment of a new company affiliated with “Kizad” under the name “Kizad Asset Management” was announced. Its mission is to manage Kizad's assets in 12 regions of the group.

Al-Khidr indicated that a number of agreements were signed on the sidelines of the conference, including an agreement with the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority for joint coordination to attract investments in food and agriculture.

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