The world is currently facing a resource crisis in terms of water, fossil fuels, minerals, and even food. Many countries have reported dangerous levels of hunger, starvation, and fatigue among the citizens bringing their standard of living to an astoundingly low margin. This goes to show the immediate necessity for fighting against the hunger crisis plaguing many parts of the world. Although most countries hesitate to take initiatives in challenging times like these, the UAE is not like most countries. The UAE is combating this crisis head-on with the National Food Security Strategy 2051. This strategy is currently running parallel to the UAE Vision 2021.
Emirates Council for Food Security (ECFS)
The ECFS was established by the UAE Cabinet, also known as the Council of Ministers, which is the chief executive body in the UAE sanctioned to bring about government initiatives. The Emirates Council for Food Security announced various measures through which it aims to reach the number one ranking on the Global Food Security Index by 2051 and amongst the top 10 countries by the year 2021.
The ECFS launched the National Food Security Strategy 2051 in November 2018 to ensure that all citizens in the UAE have access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food irrespective of their economic classifications. The mission is to provide clean, nutritious meals 365 days a year to ensure that families suffering from unemployment issues, medical problems, lack of bread earners do not have to suffer from hunger issues.
The dominant priority of the ECFS is to increase the crop output through efficient agricultural activities in order to increase the overall food production for fresh fruits, vegetables, cereals as well as packaged foods and allocate them for commerce purposes as well as for providing meals under the National Food Security Strategy. Thus, many private entities have also been intimidated to pool in their resources to make this initiative a lasting success throughout changing generations and administrations.
The ECFS is being led by the minister of state for food security Mariam Hareb Alhmeiri. The council is also assisted by several other ministers of state, including crisis management and national authority of emergency.
Role of the ECFS
- To increase the scalability of the UAE agriculture sector and increase production.
- Improve governance on food legislation laws to combat wastage issues, illegal trade, and smuggling.
- Proposing regulations to achieve food security goals.
- Develop a sustainable network of local crop producers and attract financing to help agro-businesses.
- Connect local food businesses and provide them with necessary exposure to flourish in the UAE food industry.
- Create a sustainable farming administration system to ensure the food being produced is fresh and organic.
- Submit regular activity and operational reports to the UAE cabinet of ministers to maintain communication and update on the progress of the sub initiatives.
How is the Government Encouraging Businesses to Contribute?
The Triple Bottom Line (TBL) is a framework or theory that recommends that companies commit to focusing on social and environmental concerns just as they do on profits. Various campaigns and events in the UAE, such as the Dubai Expo 2020, are already emphasizing the importance of sustainability. These government policies have attracted large crowds of investors and businesses to set up business in the UAE. Thus, the UAE has emphasized the TBL framework many times specifying that companies operating in the Arab business market must focus their business on three critical aspects, which are – People, Profits, and Planet.
How can Commitbiz Help?
We cannot sugar coat the importance of market expertise for a new player in the business sector, so we'll just put it in a clear perspective. The UAE market is vast and ever-changing, but the entities that always keep track of the market's changing trends are consulting firms/consultancies. New business owners can seek the support of such business professionals to simplify business setup in the UAE. We at Commitbiz are a team of professionals that strive to provide tailor-made services to our clients, such as business incorporation, company secretarial services, accounting and bookkeeping, and nominee director services. Contact us to know more about how to start your entrepreneurial journey in the United Arab Emirates.
