Sunday, June 08, 2008

Abu Dhabi looks beyond borders for agricultural land

Financial Times
Abu Dhabi is preparing to launch a large-scale agricultural project in Sudan to develop more than 70,000 acres of land as part of the oil-rich Gulf emirate’s efforts to secure food supplies.

The project comes amid growing interest from Middle Eastern states to use land overseas to ensure food security. Saudi Arabia and Egypt have also held talks with Sudan and are considering agricultural projects of their own in Africa’s largest nation, officials from those countries confirmed on Tuesday.

Sudan has vast, but under-developed, agricultural re-sources and has been described as a potential bread basket for the Middle East.

Robert Zoellick, president of the World Bank, said Riyadh – which plans to phase out domestic wheat production by 2016 to preserve its finite water resources – had asked the institution for help with plans to invest in agricultural projects abroad. [Saudi Arabia's wheat initiative has always been, ahem, insane.]
...
Sudan – keen to attract funding and technology into agriculture – provides land free of charge to investors for such projects, officials said. Although rich in resources, it has been blighted by decades of misrule and conflict, and suffers from a dilapidated infrastructure and inefficient bureaucracy.
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Details of the Sudan scheme have not been finalised but the Abu Dhabi fund will seek to produce corn, alfalfa (feed for livestock) and other crops, with wheat a possibility. A feasibility study on the project was due to be finished in four months, Mr Shamsi said: “Food security in Abu Dhabi, that is one of the main reasons.”
Meanwhile, the war in Darfur persists.

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3 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I think it is very unfair of you to link to such a story, implying that Darfur should be resolved first before investment is made in Sudan.

Darfur is probably one of the most misunderstood crisis, worldwide. It does not have an easy solution as it is spiraling out of control and no matter how much good will the government has, it cannot just be solved.

However, economic sustainability of Sudan is going to drive us to a stable Darfur (among other things).

I have always liked your blog, but this link made me wonder if you are indeed aware of the intricacies of the Darfur problem.

Please keep in mind that I am NOT with the current Sudanese regime and actually am staying away from Sudan, namely because of the current government and their inability to bring the different parts of Sudan together.

2:54 PM  
Blogger nzm said...

Details of the Sudan scheme have not been finalised but the Abu Dhabi fund will seek to produce corn, alfalfa (feed for livestock) and other crops, with wheat a possibility.

And, in time, biofuel crops another possibility?

6:47 PM  
Blogger Dunitz Sandrino said...

In order to have a bright future, agriculture in Abu Dhabi needs to increase its production.

10:06 AM  

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