The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) announced on Feb. 25 that it held the first Korea-Qatar Smart Farm Cooperation Committee in Doha, Qatar, to promote exchanges and cooperation in the field of smart agriculture between the two countries as a follow-up to an MOU signed between Korea and Qatar in October 2023.
The Qatar-Korea Smart Farm Cooperation Committee is a working-level committee at the ministerial level. It is chaired by Lee Sang-man, an official of MAFRA and its chief representative. The two countries shared the direction of smart agriculture policies and discussed research cooperation, including joint technology demonstrations in the field of smart farming. They introduced a Korean smart farm innovation valley model and proposed making investments to build an innovation valley in Qatar.
MAFRA has been expanding policies to foster and support domestic smart agriculture, including enacting the Smart Agriculture Act in July 2023. In order to expand K-smart farms overseas, the ministry is creating various policies including establishing demonstration greenhouses in countries interested in importing Korean smart farms such as those in the Middle East and expanding the number of trade centers for smart farms.
Qatar is showing much interest in strengthening food security by spreading smart agriculture in accordance with its national food security strategy. It plans to establish the next phase of its strategy 2024. Qatar officials are planning to tour the Smart Farm Innovation Valley model and export companies in the first half of this year for closer cooperation with Korea.
In addition, Qatar invited Hassad Food to the cooperation committee to discuss the possibility of holding a business forum between Hassad Food and Korean companies when the delegation visits Korea. Hassad Food is an investment arm of the Qatar Investment Authority with a primary focus on the field of agriculture. The company has the stated goal of meeting 60% of Qatar’s food demand. A visit to Korea by a working-level Qatar economic group is expected to expedite cooperation projects between the two countries.
“Smart agriculture is drawing much international attention amid changes in internal and external conditions such as climate change and the development of the artificial intelligence industry,” Lee said. “Based on the revitalization of Korean smart farming, we will strengthen intergovernmental cooperation and solidify our support system so that K-smart agriculture technology can more easily enter promising export markets such as the Middle East.”