Turning sandy-deserts green
Regional Views
The Global Food Network Against Food Crisis, an alliance of UN and partner agencies, forecasts that COVID-19 may lead to over 265 million people suffering from a food crisis. While we do not expect such insecurity to hit the MENA region this year, the high dependence on food imports due to the region's environmental challenges and fast-growing population, along with decades of conflict and negligence, suggests the region may be vulnerable to a food crisis in the long-term. This week, we analyse:
- The region's large food import bill, and discuss alternative options that can be accelerated by governments.
- Using Qatar as a case study, which has been pushed by the boycott to self-sustain its agriculture sector, we find the use of agriculture technology or agritech is critical for the region.
Florence Eid-Oakden, Ph.D, Chief Economist
Ghalia Al Bajali, Rama Hojeij, Analysts
The Regional Views series are thematic papers aimed at identifying and analysing factors behind medium to long-term economic trends shaping the region. Our analysis draws conclusions that help businesses and investors get ahead of the curve. As a firm staffed by Middle Easterners, we focus on insight rather than standard analysis.
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