Qatar took part in the 38th General Assembly of the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development (AOAD), which was held in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, on Thursday. The Qatari delegation to the meeting was headed by HE Minister of Municipality Abdullah bin Hamad bin Abdullah al-Attiyah.
In his speech at the meeting, HE the Minister affirmed that Qatar has made wide strides in the areas of food security as well as agricultural, animal and fishery production, thanks to its continuous support and attention to this vital sector.
He indicated that during the past five years, this support in addition to the efforts of agricultural producers, contributed to achieving a significant increase in production, leading to a 98% increase in fresh vegetable production and a 100% self-sufficiency in the animal production sector in fresh milk, dairy products, and fresh poultry.
HE the Minister noted the great attention that Qatar attaches to the fish production sector, and its endeavour to sustain it through development programmes, most notably the "Aquatic Research Center". He stressed that the State will continue its efforts to enhance joint work and provide all forms of support and assistance to various agricultural projects, which are considered an important tool in maintaining this production and increasing it in accordance with food security plans and strategies, and in adherence to the directives of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, the objectives of the national development strategy, and the directions of the Qatar National Vision 2030.
HE the Minister praised Saudi Arabia's hosting of the 38th General Assembly of the organization, appreciating the important role played by AOAD in the field of promoting joint Arab action and tackling the challenges resulting from the profound transformations witnessed by the agriculture and food security sector at the global level.
He explained that these challenges were the result of developments over the past years that led to disruption of production and global food supply chains, which calls for more joint work to maintain the gains of the organization member states over the past years, and to maintain the cohesion of their food security system, calling at the same time to enhance joint co-operation and exchange of experiences between countries, which contributes to achieving food security and sustainable development for Arab nations.
They discussed the decisions of the Ministerial Committee formed for Arab food security for member states, based on the consultative meeting between the Secretary-General of the League of Arab States and the Arab Ministers of Agriculture, which was held at the headquarters of the General Secretariat last September.
