The UAE and New Zealand have signed an agreement to enhance collaboration in food security, a step aligning with the UAE’s approach to advance multilateral and bilateral cooperation in the face of global challenges in a bid to build a sustainable future.
Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Damien O’Connor, New Zealand’s Minister of Trade, signed the MoA at the New Zealand Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai.
Speaking on the new partnership, Mariam Almheiri said, “The UAE and New Zealand enjoy robust and long-standing trade relations, with bilateral trade seeing an average annual growth of 11 percent in the past decade. Building on our strong ties, we are pleased to join forces with New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to boost food security and streamline supply chains. Under the MoA, we will share best practices and expertise based on high-tech and innovative solutions.”
For his part, Honorable Damien O’Connor said, “I’m pleased to be here in the UAE and to sign an MoA on a food security partnership with Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri. As an agricultural and innovative trading nation, this partnership recognizes our role in supplying high-quality, safe food and beverages to the UAE. Notably, it also identifies opportunities to share knowledge to boost self-sufficiency and collaborate on policy challenges we all face together.”
The MoA covers three areas of cooperation. These include exchanging knowledge between government agencies with a focus on the use of modern technologies and artificial intelligence in agriculture and food production, increasing mutual food trade, and sharing policies and best practices in the sectors.
Officials from the two ministries will meet regularly to develop a plan for joint activities and programs aimed at advancing the MoA’s areas of cooperation and enhancing food security in the UAE and New Zealand.