UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum said that the UAE government is keen on achieving the highest levels of national food security and ensuring its sustainability as an important pillar of the quality of life of the UAE society. , To strengthen their position in global food security indicators and transform them into a leading global center for food security based on innovation.
"Achieving food security is a key focus of the UAE's direction," he said. "We want the UAE to become a leader in food security by developing a sustainable and integrated food security system that will employ future technology in innovation. Solutions to the challenges of securing food sources .. We recognize that the achievement of food security of our society is a basis on which we are based on our overall development.
"We want to develop tools and solutions to the challenges of food security, and to develop models and practical mechanisms to improve the agricultural production sectors in the country to provide sustainable and reliable resources," he added.
HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and HH Sheikh Mansour bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President and Ruler of Dubai. Al Maktoum, explained the 10 strategic initiatives developed by the Government Accelerators for the Adoption of Modern Agricultural Technology and supervised by the Office of Food Security, which aims to develop effective and innovative solutions to raise the efficiency and competitiveness of national food production, and provide channels of support to stakeholders in this sector, And attracting the necessary investments To establish sustainable agricultural projects, achieve food security for the UAE, and support economic growth effectively.
The Minister of State, responsible for the future food security of the country, Mariam Bint Mohammed Saeed Hareb Al Muhairi, said that the use of expertise and minds in the development of a comprehensive vision for the future of food security in the country, and provide an attractive environment for investors, Food self-sufficiency, which is one of the most important pillars of the national food security strategy.
"The food security issue aims to develop vital initiatives that promote the country's economic growth and ensure diversification of income sources in the post-oil economy, by finding the best solutions in aligning technology with food security trends and transforming the UAE into a regional and global center for agriculture and aquaculture projects, Sustainable fish ".
The "Accelerate Adoption of Modern Agricultural Technology" program has adopted strategic initiatives focusing on developing food security and finding innovative solutions to the challenges it faces through the adoption of modern technology for closed farming systems, characterized by sustainability and limited water dependence, reduced operational and construction costs, In supporting the sector with sustainable financing systems, and providing the necessary information and data to develop programs and studies that encourage entrepreneurs to invest in this emerging sector.
The program also developed a unified guide to building specifications and standards for modern agriculture facilities, which includes a number of solutions that contribute to reducing operational costs, reducing the requirements of fixed water tanks by 50% and reducing the requirements of water pumping systems and the requirements of fire fighting systems.
The program adopted standard procedures for issuing state-of-the-art state-of-the-art construction permits, adopting best international practices and practices in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The procedures included reducing the delivery time from 50 days to 10 days only.
The Acceleration Program has launched a modern, modernized agriculture-based license that reduces the number of commercial licenses for the plant in the livestock, plant and aquaculture sectors, from an average of three licenses to one license and a cost reduction of up to 60% Clear construction standards for modern agricultural facilities and facilities that comply with international best practices, reduce financial burdens on investors, reduce construction costs by up to 30% and reduce carbon footprint by 15%.
Initiatives also included the issuing of a comprehensive framework for the use of financial resources and systems for the financing of modern agriculture projects, which aims to establish the Agricultural Finance Fund in the country and the financing initiative of agricultural companies and agricultural technology companies.
The program has developed a package of legislation to develop the aquaculture sector in the UAE in order to meet the fish needs of the society, which includes developing mechanisms to meet the challenges of this sector, standardizing the requirements and requirements of aquaculture activities in the UAE, adopting UAE standards, And developing a system of strategic interventions for the development of the aquaculture infrastructure to ensure the provision of fish food.
Initiatives included the launching of the first national sustainable agriculture marker, which is in line with the FAO Sustainable Agriculture Assessment Framework, as well as the development of mandatory standards for aquaculture products and conformity systems for local product protection, quality control of market products and provision of logistical support to the sector Aquaculture, and the development of the aquaculture atlas, which includes suitable sites for aquaculture activities. The Atlas will contribute to attract investments dedicated to the sector, ensuring that the objectives of reducing dependence on the importation of a product Fish from 75% to about 65% over three years, raising the production of aquaculture from 3.8 thousand tons to 36 thousand tons per year sector.
During the accelerators program, the project for the establishment of a fish feed plant with a production capacity of 30 thousand tons per year has been developed with the aim of increasing the competitiveness of the local product by reducing the cost of fish production within fish farming systems by up to 10%.
The program launched the Comprehensive Food Security Information Platform (Bayanat.ae), which aims to attract foreign investment, which includes the components of the World Food Security Index. These include food availability, food use, production systems, prices and purchasing power, supply chain and product access. .
Vice President of the State:
"We want the UAE to become a leader in food security by developing a sustainable business system that employs future technology to innovate solutions to the challenges of securing food sources."
"We want to develop tools and solutions to the challenges of food security and to develop models and practical mechanisms to improve the country's agricultural production sectors to provide sustainable and reliable resources."
First-class staff
The first program aims at using technology and developing mechanisms for joint work between entrepreneurs and government agencies, in order to ensure higher levels of food production through creating investment-friendly environments. The second objective is to develop and develop aquaculture by raising Fish and aquaculture in freshwater and saline environments, aimed at providing new sources of food production.
Government accelerators are a future mechanism of action, involving joint working groups of first-class staff from federal and local government agencies, the private sector, academia and civil society organizations. Accelerators work under one umbrella to accelerate the achievement of national agenda goals and performance indicators, accelerate services, policies and programs and implement strategic government projects Through dedicated and innovative spaces where joint teams work under the supervision of a team of trainers, supervisors and international competencies, to achieve high results and tangible sustainable in short periods of time.