Qatar to Launch Dryland Nations Alliance in 2012

Wednesday, 14 December 2011

Background

The Qatar National Food Security Programme (QNFSP) is set to launch an international alliance of dryland nations by September 2012 – a strategic alignment that would see engagement and support between countries sharing food security obstacles due to scarce water resources. The development of a collaborative front on this issue is one plank in the country’s platform of achieving comprehensive self-sufficiency by 2024.

Comment

The proposed alliance of ten to twenty dryland countries will aid in developing shared solutions for water-scarce nations facing similar obstacles to food security, as international circumstances become increasingly uncertain. Such strategic aims fold neatly into the current QNFSP planning period, which is a precursor to implementing changes between 2014 and 2024. The aim is to propel Qatar into self-sufficiency by turning 45,000 hectares of its land into farms. The alliance will also include prevention and assistance measures. The establishment of domestic development programmes will include a guarantee of assistance between member-states in the case of food security crises.

Currently, Qatar produces only ten percent of its own food and relies overwhelmingly on imports. This dependence leaves it vulnerable, along with other Gulf States, to export restrictions or other forms of import disruption. The sharp growth in population brought about by the affluence created by the country’s oil and gas boom, has placed stress on food production, while the inflationary pressures of energy prices on food costs have also been considerable. The QNFSP is seeking to address this food security situation through a combination of aggressively-formulated domestic production, diversified investment and the creation of strategic reserves and storage.

These are not new ideas. Saudi Arabia went through similar plans of subsidising and investing in domestic production, which have been all but abandoned. The strain of water scarcity shifted the focus to foreign ownership of agricultural land. The purchase of tracts of underutilised land in African nations, such as Sudan and Ethiopia, by the Gulf States has led to fears of local exploitation. Qatar, however, has sought to diminish those concerns by pursuing joint ventures with private sector bodies situated in foreign zones.

The QNFSP is confident that its desalination and solar energy efforts will reap dividends, as expressed by the head of QNFSP, Fahad Al-Attiya: ‘The programme is working on research to use solar energy to desalinate sea water for use in agricultural production,’he said, while also noting the partnership with German experts, DLR, in developing solar energy technology: ‘We are working to develop research and development centres, educational facilities and providing advanced techniques enabling Qatar to diversify [its] national economy, while conserving natural resources to achieve food security.’

Efficiency and management in the agricultural sector will matter as well. ‘With such a shortage of water, farmers need to be very efficient,’ Al-Attiya said. ‘We need policy, legislation and regulation.’

Oxfam, whose CEO, Dame Barbara Stocking, attended the QNFSP launch, has urged other dryland nations, such as the United Arab Emirates, to work toward a similar goal of self-sufficiency, viewing the emergence of greater local production as crucial to solving the food crisis in the region.

The QNFSP went on to outline its hope of being at the cornerstone of international collaborative efforts involving food security and development, touching on the investment Qatar has provided across the world.As noted in the Future Directions International publication, Australia’s Engagement with the Gulf: Opportunities and Challenges, this includes Hassad Australia, a subsidiary of the Hassad Food Organisation owned by the Qatar Investment Authority. This company has focussed on wheat and livestock production in its aim of investing hundreds of millions of dollars in Australia. Evidently, there is little reason to doubt their ambitions.

Tim Thomas

Future Directions International Research Intern

Global Food and Water Crises Research Programme

*****