Abu Dhabi authority implements plan for climate-smart agriculture

Abu Dhabi has announced the implementation of a comprehensive agricultural development plan aimed at increasing the efficiency of sustainable agricultural production in the emirate.

The plan which was announced by the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA), adopts the regional planning principle of the emirate’s farms, so that the similar areas are identified in terms of resources, and development procedures are developed.

Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority, stressed that the implementation of the “Comprehensive plan for Agricultural Sustainability” is in line with the UAE’s announcement to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The neutrality initiative contributes to promoting sustainable development and supports innovation, technology localisation, food security, and the conservation of natural resources.

Climate-smart agriculture is defined as an integrated approach to managing agricultural land and livestock, forests and green areas, fisheries and creating agricultural systems to respond to climate change, Abu Dhabi Government Media Office reported.

.@adafsa_gov has implemented its Comprehensive Plan for Agricultural Sustainability to further boost efficient sustainable agricultural production in Abu Dhabi. pic.twitter.com/SqLhZZlmFa

— مكتب أبوظبي الإعلامي (@admediaoffice) November 7, 2021

ADAFSA noted that it has taken steps to ensure optimal exploitation of natural resources, particularly water, and seeks to achieve further via the application of measures including reducing reliance on non-renewable groundwater, moving towards recycled or desalinated water sources, regulating the distribution of water to farms through mass irrigation plants, moving towards the cultivation of crops that are less water-consuming and more resilient to difficult and saline climatic conditions, as well as activating legislative regulations that help reduce water consumption, the statement said.

The authority has recently launched the Abu Dhabi Gap programme, the local version of the Global Gap Global Agricultural Practices Programme, which applies standards of quality agricultural production to ensure food safety, sustainable environmental management and the health of workers in its production. Farms applying these standards are granted a globally certified certificate, with 550 farms receiving it and the number expected to rise to about 1,500 by the end of 2022.

The authority urged farm owners to shift toward organic agriculture, noting that they had succeeded in helping 75 farms shift from traditional to organic agriculture.

UAE-based Pure Harvest Smart Farms, a technology-enabled agribusiness, also announced last month that it has secured $64.5m in growth capital to accelerate the company’s expansion and technology development efforts.

Read: UAE’s Pure Harvest Smart Farms secures funding worth $64.5m to accelerate expansion

Also read: Driving the future of farming with innovation