Abdullah Salem Al Sulaiteen, Chairman of Al Sulaiteen Agricultural and Industrial Complex
Doha, Qatar: Expo 2023 Doha offers a unique chance to showcase Qatar’s significant progress in the advancement of its agricultural and horticultural sectors, as well as the nation’s determination to establish itself among the international community in this field, Abdullah Salem Al Sulaiteen, Chairman of Al Sulaiteen Agricultural and Industrial Complex (SAIC), has said.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Peninsula, Al Sulaiteen, whose organization was the first to introduce hydroponic farming to Qatar in 1998, stated that the global event calls for total support from all citizens and residents of the country and should be celebrated just like the World Cup was well received by all.
“The Doha Expo 2023 is an event that is organized for the first time in the Middle East and North Africa. We should not say that it is up to the State to do everything, because the State is a part of us as much as we are a part of it. It was on the basis of this that we launched the book on Expo 2023 Doha to promote and showcase the unique things the event has to offer,” he said.
Speaking about his foray into agriculture, Al Sulaiteen, who served in the military for several years before venturing into agriculture, noted that the journey began for him in 1989, when he was planning for retirement.
“I was in the military for a long time, and in 1989 I was planning for retirement. I believe that the period between official work and what remains in human life must be exploited for the benefit of the individual, family, country, and people, and that is what led us towards the agricultural sector, which is one of the important sectors of the State of Qatar despite its difficulties, challenges, and, in particular, climate challenges in the Gulf region in general, including Qatar.” “We started with vegetable production and later entered livestock, with sheep imported from Syria, before venturing into horticulture,” he noted.
The group now has botanical gardens that supply all kinds of plants, shrubs, and ground covers for the local market.
“The history of flower production on this farm goes back to 22 years. Earlier, Qatar was totally dependent on the neighbouring countries, especially Saudi Arabia, for all its seasonal flower needs. In the beginning, the farm started with the production of only four types of seasonal flowers in limited quantity.” He added that they noticed that locally grown seasonal flowers were better adapted to Qatari climate conditions, and their performance was much better than that of imported products.
“So, the demand for SAIC seasonal flowers rose rapidly and enormously. To meet the increasing demand, SAIC Farm has increased its production capacity year by year to reach almost eight million plants in 2023,” Al Sulaiteen said.
“Based on the testing and evaluation process, new varieties of flowers like Spreading Petunia, Lobelia, Geranium, and Thymophylla have achieved great success and shown promising results. Earlier, only Petunia, Marigold, and Vinca dotted the Qatari landscape. After the introduction of newer varieties, locally grown flower types have become much more popular and are in vogue with high demand nowadays. Especially, the Spreading Petunia has attained its own stardom with ever-rising popularity in Qatar since its introduction in 2007,” he added.
The well-respected agriculturist noted that SAIC Farm currently grows nearly 60 different types of flowers, making it one of the biggest horticultural and landscaping companies in Qatar.
On the challenges facing agriculturists in the country, Al Sulaiteen noted that the perceived difficulty of working in it and the seemingly low returns as compared to other sectors are some of the major reasons not many people are taking to farming. He added that it is necessary to continue developing and researching to expand and improve this activity as well as achieving the country’s goals, particularly those related to reaching self-sufficiency in certain products, especially vegetables.
Al Sulaiteen expressed his delight at being able to contribute his quota to the national development of Qatar, noting that flowers from SAIC Farm have continued to dot the landscape in many parts of the country.
“For so many years now, all flowers required for the Qatar national flag floral replica, which is displayed on the ceremonial road at the Corniche during the Qatar National Day on December 18, have been produced by SAIC Farm. I am very proud of how far we have gone and where we are still going,” Al Sulaiteen said.
