Doha: In line with Qatar’s food security strategy, the first phase of designing the electronic system on the country’s food stock has already been completed, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) H E Sultan bin Rashid Al Khater has said.
In a comprehensive interview with the QNA, Al Khater said the first phase of the electronic system helps in monitoring and controlling the food stocks in Qatar, determining the percentage of local and imported production, determining the sources of import, the most important dealers in strategic commodities, and identifying the movement of products from the date of their arrival at customs and their passage through wholesalers and retailers until they reach the final consumer.
He added that in the second stage, the Ministry is working to develop the ability of the electronic system to predict the future trends of import markets, product prices and monitoring the import pathways from the country of origin until the product reaches Qatar.
The system represents an important tool for officials, decision makers, institutions, departments working in the sector, private sector companies, primary suppliers and national producers for its precise monitoring mechanism, while activating public-private partnerships, said Al Khater.
He added that the electronic system also allows access to details related to the commodities, including its types and quantities, methods and quality of its storage, the spaces available in the stores and its locations, suppliers and distribution points, in addition to monitoring and managing all elements of the supply chain from import, storage, recycling, distribution and national production.
The Undersecretary also highlighted that in order to ensure food security in Qatar, contracts were signed with 14 major food companies here to raise the country’s strategic stock of food commodities, the most important of which are wheat, rice, edible oils, sugar, frozen red meat, long-term milk and powdered milk. This has contributed to overcoming the challenges posed by the supply chain disruptions during the pandemic, said Al Khater.
During the interview, the Undersecretary also spoke about Qatar’s movement towards smart industries. He said the MoCI is working with other national entities, with the support of Qatar Foundation and other leading institutions as the country moves towards a knowledge-based economy.
He referred to the Technology and Innovation Support Center (TISC) program, which was carried out in coordination with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), government agencies and a number of private sector institutions to provide a link between inventors and patents, as well as the issuance of Law No.10 of 2020 regarding the protection of industrial designs.
The law will enter into force following the issuance of the necessary executive decisions for this regard, he added.
Al Khater went on to confirm Qatar’s keenness to join a number of international agreements that represent the highest international standards in the field of intellectual property protection and innovation, such as the Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks, the Patent Law Treaty (PLT) and the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Deposit of Industrial Designs.
