Minister of Municipality and Environment, H E Abdulla bin Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Subaie (centre), and Vice-Chairman of Dar Al Arab Board of Directors, Sheikh Dr. Khalid bin Thani bin Abdullah Al Thani (right), during the 2nd Annual Conference on Food Secu
Minister of Municipality and Environment, H E Abdulla bin Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Subaie, has said that self-sufficiency rate of Qatar in food production increased significantly during the past two years.
“Qatar gave top priority to food security issue which attracted great importance under the current situation, focusing on local food production as per the available resources of the country,” said H E the Minister while speaking at the opening ceremony of the 2nd Annual Conference on Food Security in Qatar.
The event was organised by Dar Al Arab yesterday at Doha Sheraton Hotel. The opening ceremony was attended by Vice-Chairman of Dar Al Arab Board of Directors, Sheikh Dr. Khalid bin Thani bin Abdullah Al Thani; Managing Director and CEO of Dar Al Arab, Jaber Salem Al Harmi; Director of Food Security Department at MME, Masoud Jarullah Al Marri.
H E the Minister said that Qatar’s self-sufficiency in production of fresh chicken increased from 49 percent to 123 percent and dairy products from 27 percent to 106 percent during past two years. He said that local eggs and red meat productions also increased from 13 percent of total need of the country to 28 percent and 12 percent to 16 percent respectively.
H E the Minister said that food security has many aspects, as it is connected to both the agricultural and the industrial sector. He said that Qatar’s strategy will focus on producing local goods that the country has a comparative advantage in producing including fresh produce, dairy, dates, red meat, poultry, eggs, and fish.
“The other element of the strategy is to build a strategic stock of the most crucial products that are not produced locally, most important of which is wheat, sugar, rice, and cooking oil. Following the directives of H E Prime Minister and Interior Minister to achieve the goals of food security in the State, several projects related to food security were awarded to private investors,” H E the Minister said.
The Minister said that these projects will help achieve self-sufficiency in high-quality agricultural products and to build up a strategic stock with low prices. Another main goal is to reach optimum levels of production that would reflect on the growth of the agricultural sector.
Jaber Salem Al Harmi, in a key note speech, said that the Conference aims to forge a new concept of partnership between the public, private and media sectors, as the meeting of these parties supports a new type of cooperation that contributes effectively to the development and advancement of prosperity in the national economy.
He said that the media plays an active role in the development of the national economy and is a key partner in building society in its various sectors.
The CEO of Hassad Food Company, Mohamed bin Badr Al Sadah, and Dr. Abdul Rahman Al Ansari, Member of the Board and Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Food Security at Qatar Chamber, highlighted the roles of Hassad and Qatar Chamber in assuring food security in the country.
Dar Al Arab launched ‘Green Report’, a collection of figures, facts about food security in the country, to be a reference guide for researchers and those interested in this aspect.
The participants, guests and sponsors were honoured for their contribution to ensure food security in the country at the end of opening session of the conference.
