Qatar has been strategically working to increase food production over the years to achieve self-sufficiency in some agricultural sectors by 2022 as per the Qatar National Vision 2030.
This effort received a strong impetus following the illegal blockade imposed in June 2017 by some of the neighbouring countries.
The growth seen in agricultural sector is tremendous as production of vegetables, meat, fish, poultry, eggs and animal feed has increased by more than 400 per cent compared to the same period last year.
This stupendous growth, achieved by harmonious coming together of ministries, other government bodies and local farmers, will benefit all the people residing in Qatar. The farmers increased their capacity exponentially as various government bodies helped with technical knowhow, transparent policies and friendly handholding, if required.
Qatar pumped in QR70m to promote local agricultural sectors with various schemes, policies and exhibitions.
One such event which really benefitted the industry was the 6th Qatar International Agricultural Exhibition & Conference (AgriteQ) held at the Doha Exhibition & Convention Centre.
The exhibition, which concluded yesterday, had around 313 exhibitors and 31 international pavilions from more than 36 countries and was an excellent opportunity to stimulate the agriculture, livestock and fisheries sectors as latest technology and methodologies from all over the world were showcased.
The government has set up three centres to conduct research on poultry, fish and houbara bustard production, which will contribute to the quality and help increase production.
Agriteq also showcased Qatar’s local products and was a platform for people to learn about the farm sector and introduce them to the local products which are inherently of better quality and more fresh as they have to travel much less from the farm to the table.
The success of the exhibition can be vouched for from the stream of visitors throughout the day and evening. The expo helped consumers to know about local products available in the market and it helped farmers gain access to latest technology and international best practices.
Ministry of Municipality and Environment is also stepping in and helping farmers set up a marketing company to promote the local products.
The first three months of the year has already seen Qatar galloping towards self-sufficiency in many food items like fish, dairy and certain vegetables. Summer will kick in soon and these combined efforts are surely to see fruit and keep the production zooming ahead.
