The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) has commenced its yearly drive to provide financial and technical assistance to farmers in the UAE as part of its priority to encourage local farmers to switch to innovative, eco-friendly farming patterns and promote local agricultural production.
The Ministry’s efforts support the Year of Giving initiative, launched by the UAE President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and the national food security strategy.
Every year, MOCCAE conducts a survey to identify the needs of farmers and understand the essential requirements to be supplied during the next cycle. The study helps the Ministry ascertain the facilities necessary to guarantee food safety while ensuring the protection of natural resources. MOCCAE also oversees the provision of the supplies to UAE farmers at half price.
His Excellency Sultan Alwan, Assistant Undersecretary of the Regions Sector at MOCCAE, said: “MOCCAE works relentlessly to support local agriculture and marketing of national agricultural products in order to implement the country’s food diversity strategy. The Ministry is committed to encouraging the adoption of modern agricultural practices, such as organic agriculture, and keen to eliminate the challenges farmers face in their work.”
He added: “In line with international best practices, MOCCAE leverages its effective partnerships with private sector companies to provide farmers with agricultural supplies, such as fertilizers, pesticides, seeds, irrigation pipes and soil testing equipment, for half of their market price. The suppliers deliver all materials purchased by the farmers from the Ministry to the farm or to the nearest location in the vicinity of the farm.”
His Excellency Sultan Alwan noted that as a result of a series of meetings with farmers in different regions during 2016 to study their actual requirements, MOCCAE will supply over 52 types of materials this year, indicating an increase of 40 percent on last year.
The distribution of agricultural materials and supplies for 2017 will begin during the second week of August. The materials include 9,500 tons of fertilizers, such as manure, hydroponic and organic fertilizers, as well as integrated pest management (IPM) supplies, such as low-impact insecticides and fungicides that are environmentally safe and suitable for aquatic agriculture, protected and organic farming.
In addition, the Ministry will distribute up to five million seeds of the most common crops suitable for both protected and organic farming, such as tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers. Materials for the construction of greenhouses, including polycarbonate sheets, thermal insulation and insect screens, hydroponic grow pads and cooling pads, and equipment such as irrigation pipes and pumps will also be available.
Farmers can find details on the materials, prices, methods of use and location of distribution centres on the Ministry’s website www.moccae.gov.ae.