Masdar City, the home of technology innovation and Research & Development in Abu Dhabi, and DANA, the Abu Dhabi-based venture builder and investment platform, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to advance food security at the national level.
The MoU contributes to agritech sustainability and supports the UAE in meeting key objectives in line with the National Food Security Strategy 2051.
Under the agreement Masdar City and DANA, which supports women-led start-ups in the sectors of agritech, energy and water solutions, and circular economy, will build its first Abu Dhabi-based beta site in Masdar City.
The beta site is a place where people who have not worked with the project or the company, will use the solution or project and test the feasibility of the developed solution or software.
Ahmed Baghoum, Acting Executive Director, Masdar City, said, “R&D has always been the catalyst for bringing innovative projects to life, driving essential reform and delivering positive change across industries and society.”
Several National Food Security Strategy 2051 priorities will be boosted including enhancing local production, enabling sustainable food production through modern technologies and diversifying food sources via partnership development.
The partnership has already begun engaging with venture capitalists and incubators from across the MENA region to offer services to portfolio companies as the agritech sector grows.
The regional agriculture market is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.7 percent through 2026.
Zada Haj, co-founder and CEO of DANA, said, “We witness the Abu Dhabi ecosystem’s potential on a daily basis, however, the option for hands-on testing of the tech solutions in the field is often missing.”
She said, “For the agritech sector a pivot is more than just a new line of code, so the product needs to be tested for its feasibility, accessibility and affordability as early as possible.”
Operating for nearly two years, DANA, founded by three women, has served as a venture builder and investment platform for women-led desert tech start-ups since its establishment.
When completed, the site will consist of 1,700 square metres of greenhouses, net houses and open field farming, displaying diverse approaches to sustainable production of crops in the desert.
Several start-ups have already began submitting applications to test at Masdar City and the construction is set to commence in July 2022 before full-time operations start by the last quarter of the year.