Speakers agree on enhanced co-operation at the 12th GPCA Agri-Nutrients Conference
Only through greater collaboration and coordination between the public and private sector will current and future food security challenges be resolved in the run up to 2030, agreed speakers at the recently concluded 12th annual two-day edition of the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Agri-Nutrients Conference, held in late September in Dubai.
Held under the theme ‘Resolving Global Food Challenges with Agri-Nutrients’, the conference kicked off on Day One with welcome remarks from Abdulrahman Al-Suwaidi, CEO, QAFCO and Chairman, Agri-Nutrients Committee, GPCA, who called on the industry to engage in better collaboration, to include innovation and develop new business models as the solution to global food challenges.
The GCC agri-nutrients has already placed sustainability as a priority, Al-Suwaidi said. Improving agricultural productivity and enhancing food supply for all is another key driver in the industry’s vision for the future, he added.
Inaugural address
HE Mohammed Al Nuaimi, Assistant Undersecretary for the Support Services Sector, Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, UAE, presented the inaugural address in which he highlighted that accessibility, affordability, and sustainability are at the core of food security efforts.
To help support these efforts, he called on the agri-technology industry to innovate, find practical solutions and share them with the government to work more efficiently together towards achieving food security.
In her keynote address, Alzbeta Klein, Director General, International Fertilizer Association (IFA), described coalition and cooperation as the only way to feed the world and ensure food security through agri-nutrients. She touched upon the steep increase in gas prices and their impact on food security and agri-nutrients, calling upon industry leaders in the audience to collaborate and work with legislators to prevent another catastrophic food crisis in the world.
Global industry trends
Abdulrahman Shamsaddin, CEO, SABIC Agri-Nutrients and Vice-Chair, Agri-Nutrients Committee, GPCA, welcomed delegates for the second and final day of the event. He was followed on stage by strategy experts from the industry, who discussed global industry M&A trends and regional consolidation trends in a fireside conversation.
Tremendous challenges
“The agri-nutrient industry in the region and globally is facing tremendous challenges as well as opportunities to supply vital raw materials to new and existing markets and support food security globally. At the same time, the industry is coming face to face with a formidable task – to lower its environmental footprint and transition towards greener, more sustainable products that align with the decarbonization goals of regional and global economies,” affirmed Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, Secretary General, GPCA.
“The twin challenge of ensuring food security and meeting the world’s sustainability challenges will continue to occupy the minds of business and government leaders for the next decades to come, but I am confident that the industry is well positioned to support this transition and contribute to global food security as well as net zero targets,” he added.
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