Lessons learnt from the challenges faced by farmers in the Emirates could help the UAE to play a leading role in addressing global food security and water scarcity, said the Minister of Climate Change and Environment.
Dr Amna Al Dahak made the comments during a visit to a farm in Al Ain on Monday. She saw how challenges caused by the hot climate and water scarcity were being overcome. Climate change and growing water scarcity mean more countries must find new and unique solutions, she added.
The farm, which belongs to Emirati entrepreneur Abdulrahman Al Shamsi, is among those that have shown how developing new models can allow farmers to thrive amid adverse conditions. The farm in the Al Arad region spans 160,000 square metres and grows produce including dates, pomegranates, courgettes, watermelons, lemons, cabbage and mangoes.
"In our visit today to Abdulrahman Al Shamsi’s farm, we have seen a very innovative model in terms of a very complete and coherent agricultural system where they have aquaculture, they have poultry and livestock, and also the open field in the closed system farming," she said.
"Those are all different models that have been brought together in an innovative model that we’d like, through this visit to Abdulrahman Farm, to export in a very cost-effective way to other farmers in the UAE.
"We believe that implementing or investing in such models is going to create that disruptive leap that we’re looking for when it comes to food production in the UAE."
Seeds of the future
It comes after the Plant the Emirates campaign was launched this month by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, to boost the country's agriculture sector and to help address food security issues.
The initiative involves setting up a national centre to promote domestic farming with the aim of increasing agricultural production by a fifth in the next five years. Traditionally reliant on food imports, the UAE has more recently attracted significant investment in agricultural technology to increase its own output.
Dr Al Dahak said the farm’s innovative agricultural systems were a model for sustainable food production. The farm integrates aquaculture, livestock, poultry and closed-system farming, with the comprehensive approach able to address food security challenges, she added.
She emphasised the importance of investing in innovative models to tackle issues such as water scarcity and climate change, to scale them within the UAE and export the knowledge to countries around the world.
"There are a lot of challenges related to hot climates and water scarcity that we, in the UAE, have been dealing with for a number of years and decades.
"But we know that those are challenges that a lot of places in the world are facing and dealing with. And we, in the UAE, know that we can also globalise a lot of the innovative solutions that we have on the ground and export them to the world - because food security is not just a national issue.
"It is not something that we in the UAE focus on alone. It is something the world is focusing on ... and we, in the UAE, like to lead and also provide for humanity worldwide when it comes to solutions in food security and food systems."
In a year, Mr Al Shamsi's farm produces 150 tonnes of fruit and vegetables and 50 tonnes of tilapia fish, which are distributed to local supermarkets. The farm is self-sufficient, with the food for the fish and the livestock grown on site and water from the fish pools used to irrigate the crops. Ammonia-rich fish waste is used as fertiliser, while plastic coverings on the soil help to conserve moisture.
A key component of the Plant the Emirates project is to create a National Agricultural Centre, which can develop local production to enhance quality and competitiveness.
"One of the areas that the National Agricultural Centre is focusing on is identifying innovative models across the agricultural landscape in the UAE and looking at how those can be replicated in a very scalable, but also cost-effective way, that can be implemented in other farms in and also outside of the UAE," Dr Al Dahak said.
Further details of the centre will be revealed later this year, state news agency Wam reported. The National also paid a visit to the farm last month, with Mr Al Shamsi saying at the time that many people visit his farm to “learn about his methods”, with “more than 40 farms" using his techniques.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
The National in Davos
We are bringing you the inside story from the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in Davos, a gathering of hundreds of world leaders, top executives and billionaires.
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
