Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) has announced that it will be holding its seventh annual conference on 26-27 November 2014 in Amman. The theme will be food security options in Arab countries, based on a comprehensive report on the subject which AFED is preparing in cooperation with a group of experts at leading research and policy centers.
AFED Food Security report will provide an overview of the state of agricultural resources in Arab countries, and discuss the role of science and technology in enhancing water and food security. It will study the role of livestock in enhancing food security, the impact of climate change on food production, and the implications of food price volatility. Experts from all over the region are preparing case studies on vital issues such as enhancing wheat self-sufficiency, virtual water trade in the GCC countries, desalination role in food security, UAE food and water strategy, food security options in Saudi Arabia, marginal land productivity in the Badia of Jordan, and Morocco green plan, among many others.
This will be the seventh of AFED’s series of reports on the state of Arab environment, which covered since 2008: Arab Environment- Future Challenges (2008), Impact of Climate Change on Arab Countries (2009), Water-Sustainable Management of a Scarce Resource (2010), Green Economy in a Changing Arab World (2011), Survival Option- Ecological Footprint in Arab Countries (2012), and Sustainable Energy (2013). AFED reports have gained a reputation as the most credible sources on environment issues in the Arab region, and are widely used by researchers and policy makers all over the world.
The report is co-edited by Dr. Mahmoud El-Solh, Director General of the International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas (ICARDA) and Dr. Abdulkarim Sadik, Senior Economist at Kuwait Fund, who is a renowned authority in agricultural economics.
AFED Secretary General Najib Saab explained that “Arab countries have been pursuing a target of higher food self sufficiency rate, but achieving this goal remained beyond reach, as limited land and water resources were not used in efficient manner.” Failing to manage Arab resources in an appropriate manner threatens life itself in the region, Saab explained. He hoped that AFED report and conference on food security will help to develop the right policies which enhance food security, taking account of water scarcity.
Saab announced that in May AFED will be holding a consultation meeting in Kuwait to discuss drafts of its new report, hosted by Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development. The report’s authors will be discussing their findings with a team of experts and academics along with business and public policy leaders, in view of enhancing the contents.