Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, urged nations and organisations to work together to harness technology to support food production.
Ms Al Mheiri spoke on Tuesday in Amsterdam at the opening of GreenTech, a three-day meeting in the Dutch capital for the horticulture industry and policymakers from more than 100 countries.
The minister spoke about the UAE’s goal of become a leading exporter of sustainable agricultural solutions for hot and arid climates and to share its experiences as the Netherlands does.
She said global action was required to allow all parts of the agriculture sector to thrive.
“Food systems are broken today and they are unsustainable. There is so much we have to do to fix them,” Ms Al Mheiri said.
“We need to forge partnerships, we need to exchange knowledge, we need to grow and develop our agri-technologists to solve these issues and transform our food systems into more sustainable ones.
UAE aims to be food innovation hub
“Just as the Netherlands have looked at innovation and technology, we are doing the same — to really look into what kind of foods make sense to grow in the UAE, harnessing the power of technology,” she said.
“With our partners we are looking at how we can lessen the cost of operations to help other countries that have the kind of climate we have.”
Ms Al Mheiri said it was important to understand the crops that grow in water scarce and desert environments and to develop solutions that were not always high tech to address the needs of small farmers everywhere.
“We have set a goal for the UAE to become a global hub for food innovation and technology just like the Netherlands … as one of the smallest countries yet the second largest exporter when it comes to agricultural goods,” she said.
“That is the same mindset we are trying, to really leverage innovation, get the youth excited about studying agri technology.”
Netherlands a shining light for agriculture
After the US, the Netherlands is the world’s largest exporter of agricultural produce.
One of the most densely populated countries, the Netherlands has made the maximum use of limited farmland with exports of €65 billion ($67.9bn) worth of vegetables, fruit, flowers, meat and dairy products each year.
The UAE in the past few years has utilised technology to produce locally farmed salmon, grow berries and quinoa.
Vertical farms use a system of hydroponics in which plants thrive in nutrient-rich water instead of soil.
Jan Kees Goet, secretary general with the Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, said the world had learnt lessons from the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
“The terrible war in Ukraine has made people aware that food security is not always guaranteed and the Covid crisis was a wake-up call with distortions in international trade,” he said.
He said the key was to co-create by working with partners overseas to find local answers to global challenges, while drawing expertise from high technology sectors, robotics and artificial intelligence.
“Healthy products for local markets, less water use, protected cultivation with less chemicals, green houses that generate energy — if there is one country that is trying to find answers to the questions of today, tomorrow and the future it is the Netherlands,” he said.
“The Netherlands is small, densely populated and our horticulture sector is large and well developed. Knowledge, entrepreneurship and public-private co-operation has made the sector one of the most competitive of our economy.”
Food security at Cop28
Ms Al Mheiri also met Prince Jaime de Bourbon de Parme, the Dutch climate envoy.
Discussions centred on preparing for and placing food high on the agenda of Cop28, which the UAE will host next year.
The agricultural sector is the world’s biggest employer and also the most vulnerable to climate change.
Prince Jaime said both governments were looking at ways to reshape farming with technology when faced with limited water resources.
“It’s clear that [Ms Al Mheiri] wants to put food at the centre of the engagement,” he said.
“How do we use high tech for efficiency in the food industry and adapt to a rapidly changing world — that is definitely something we will be looking at jointly.”
During GreenTech, professionals will share knowledge on precision horticulture, robotics in greenhouses, organic farming, climate control, water and energy solutions. The event runs from June 14 to 16.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Short-term let permits explained
Homeowners and tenants are allowed to list their properties for rental by registering through the Dubai Tourism website to obtain a permit.
Tenants also require a letter of no objection from their landlord before being allowed to list the property.
There is a cost of Dh1,590 before starting the process, with an additional licence fee of Dh300 per bedroom being rented in your home for the duration of the rental, which ranges from three months to a year.
Anyone hoping to list a property for rental must also provide a copy of their title deeds and Ejari, as well as their Emirates ID.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
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European arms
Known EU weapons transfers to Ukraine since the war began: Germany 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger surface-to-air missiles. Luxembourg 100 NLAW anti-tank weapons, jeeps and 15 military tents as well as air transport capacity. Belgium 2,000 machine guns, 3,800 tons of fuel. Netherlands 200 Stinger missiles. Poland 100 mortars, 8 drones, Javelin anti-tank weapons, Grot assault rifles, munitions. Slovakia 12,000 pieces of artillery ammunition, 10 million litres of fuel, 2.4 million litres of aviation fuel and 2 Bozena de-mining systems. Estonia Javelin anti-tank weapons. Latvia Stinger surface to air missiles. Czech Republic machine guns, assault rifles, other light weapons and ammunition worth $8.57 million.
The Bio
Favourite holiday destination: Either Kazakhstan or Montenegro. I’ve been involved in events in both countries and they are just stunning.
Favourite book: I am a huge of Robin Cook’s medical thrillers, which I suppose is quite apt right now. My mother introduced me to them back home in New Zealand.
Favourite film or television programme: Forrest Gump is my favourite film, that’s never been up for debate. I love watching repeats of Mash as well.
Inspiration: My late father moulded me into the man I am today. I would also say disappointment and sadness are great motivators. There are times when events have brought me to my knees but it has also made me determined not to let them get the better of me.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
