People buying local vegetables at a market.
Doha: Qatar achieved many goals of its food security strategy during 2021, as the local production of vegetables jumped from about 66,000 tonnes to over 103,000 tonnes, which achieves a self-sufficiency rate of 41 percent.
The target self-sufficiency rate in 2023 is 70 percent of local vegetables. The self-sufficiency rate of local dates has also increased to 86 percent now, and it is expected that the percentage will reach 95 percent by 2023.
The volume of production of dairy and its products maintained the same levels in 2020, as the State of Qatar achieved complete self-sufficiency, by more than 106 percent, with a production volume of 230,000 tonnes milk, in addition to achieving self-sufficiency in the consumption of fresh poultry, as the volume of production reached 28 thousand tons and the percentage of self-sufficiency to 124 percent.
As for red meat, the volume of production increased to 12,500 tonnes, achieving a self-sufficiency rate of 24 percent compared to about 8,000 tonnes and a self-sufficiency rate 16 percent in 2018. The volume of local production of table eggs increased to 11,000 tonnes, achieving a self-sufficiency rate of 35 percent, compared to about 6,000 tonnes and a self-sufficiency rate 20 percent in 2018. It is expected that the self-sufficiency rate of table eggs will reach 70 percent by 2023.
The volume of fresh fish production has maintained the same levels during 2019 and 2020 due to the stabilisation of the local catch to preserve the fish stock in the State of Qatar. It is expected that the self-sufficiency rate of local fresh fish will reach 90 percent by 2023, through the contribution of fish farming projects in the country that increases the local production of fresh fish.
In the same context, the state, under contracts with the private sector, was able to raise the reserve stock of strategic commodities, the most important of which are wheat, rice, edible oils, sugar, frozen red meat, long-term milk and powdered milk, which contributed to overcoming all the challenges imposed by the pandemic and affected supply chains.
In the agriculture, livestock and fisheries sector, recent years have recorded a remarkable growth in the register of breeders, shepherds and the size of the herd by increasing the number of holders and the number of heads that are raised.
The national programme for honey bees was launched, and farmers were trained in beekeeping. A total of 11 meadow were rehabilitated, in addition to fixing the work in the yards selling local vegetables for a period of 7 months from the November 1 until the end of May of each year.
In the field of fisheries, the State has paid great attention to fish farming as one of the most important pillars of the national development strategy, as it completed the establishment of the Aquatic Fisheries Research Center, which represents the core of the establishment of many small and medium projects for fish farming, as a public bid was launched for investors to establish projects for fish farming.
The public services sector, it also witnessed important achievements, in completion and development of in the country, as 51 parks were opened and rehabilitated out of 94 parks covering different regions of the country, including 40 parks in the city of Doha, 20 parks in Al Rayyan, 6 parks in Al Wakra, 7 parks in Al Khor and Al Dhakhirah, 7 in Al Daayen, 5 in Al Shamal, 6 in Umm Salal, and 3 parks in Al Shahaniya.
