UAE and US in $8bn drive to prepare agriculture for climate change

Fund announces at Cop27 that it has doubled its existing commitment, from $4bn

Funds will go towards projects that can help to tackle climate change, prepare for its effects and lift people out of poverty. Photo: Aim for Climate

A joint UAE-US fund to help prepare the agricultural sector for climate change has been doubled to $8 billion.

The Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (Aim for Climate) has mobilised another $4bn since it launched last year to build more resilient agriculture and food systems, it was announced at Cop27 on Friday by Mariam Al Mheiri, UAE Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and Tom Vilsack, the US Agriculture Secretary.

The funds will go towards projects that can mitigate climate change, prepare for its effects and help to lift people out of poverty. Aim for Climate also seeks to support small-scale farmers, especially women, and communities in low- and middle-income countries most susceptible to the world's changing climate.

"We wanted to partner with a strong one," Ms Al Mheiri told The National, about the tie-up with the US. "We also have political will on both sides."

Aim for Climate seeks to boost the use of vertical farming, hydroponics and aquaculture. Ms Almheiri said the UAE has shown how this technology and innovation can help to grow crops never thought possible in the country.

"We are growing berries now," she said. "How can that happen? This showcased that when you are able to control an environment, it can open up so many different things. You don’t need to use chemicals. It is a much more efficient system and you have got something that is so tasty."

Ms Al Mheiri said vertical farming, also known as "closed environment agriculture", would be crucial in the years ahead as it allows countries to grow fruit and vegetables much more sustainably by recirculating water, using renewable power and avoiding dangerous chemicals.

"When you have that you start a whole domino effect of behaviour change because people will start buying locally and start reducing the carbon footprint when it comes to sourcing food."

Agriculture is a crucial part of the fight against climate change as it contributes about 25 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions, according to the UN. Food security is also imperiled globally, with crops susceptible to changing temperatures and extreme weather.

Aim for Climate is now being supported by more than 275 government and non-government partners that include businesses, academia, non-profit organisations, think tanks and others.

Aim for Climate also said on Friday that the number of its “innovation sprints” — initiatives funded by private sector rather than government that have targeted goals in areas such as small-scale farming and methane reduction — have increased by 22 to 30.

It also announced plans to hold a climate summit in Washington, from May 8-10, to highlight issues before the Cop28 meeting in Dubai next year.

“Aim for Climate is focusing on a sector that has been overlooked in terms of the opportunities it offers for global climate action,” Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Special Envoy for Climate Change, said at the fund's launch last year.

“This initiative demonstrates the UAE’s holistic and inclusive approach to climate action.”

The announcements came on the same day US President Joe Biden arrived to address the climate conference in Sharm El Sheikh.

Bolstered by his Democratic party's stronger than expected showing in the US midterm elections, Mr Biden is expected to try to galvanise ambition at the conference.

Cop27 at Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt — in pictures

A man wears a face mask that reads "no climate justice without human rights" during a protest at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP

A presentation at the American University in Cairo Pavilion. Reuters

Egyptian artist Bahia Sheha stands inside her installation "Heaven & Hell in the Anthropocene." AFP

Akihiro Nishimura, minister of the environment of Japan, reviews notes with others at the COP27. AP

US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry, right, and Xie Zhenhua, China's special envoy for climate greet each other at the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. AP

Brazilian president-elect Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva poses for a group photograph with representatives of his country's indigenous people. AFP

People attend the COP27 UN Climate Summit in Sharm El-Sheikh. EPA

Activists dancing during a discussion on leaflets at the Cop27 climate conference, taking place in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AFP

An activist wears a polar bear outfit as part of campaigning. AFP

From left, Rakia Amandou of Niger, Ba Aminata of Burkina Faso, Kenyan Rosemary Nenini, Fatima Mustafa Ahmed from Sudan and Djeneb Dicko from Burkina Faso at the Indigenous Peoples Pavilion. AP

Abdulla Nasser Musallam Al Rahbi, Oman's Ambassador to Egypt and Permanent Representative to the Arab League, speaks at the COP27 climate conference in Egypt's Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh. AFP

Climate activists demonstrate in the designated protest zone. AP

Sheikh Abdullah, Director General of Environment at the Public Authority of Kuwait, speaks at Cop27. AFP

Visitors at the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre. AFP

A display outside the convention centre. AFP

A fountain in the green zone at the International Convention Centre at sunset. AFP

Mohamed bin Daina, right, Bahrain's Special Envoy for Climate Affairs and Chief Executive at the Supreme Council for Environment, at the conference. AFP

Members of Extinction Rebellion stage a protest at the Glencairn tidal pool outside Cape Town, South Africa to mark Cop27's 'Water Day'. AP

From left, Fahad Al Maskari of the Khalifa University, Frank Hartmann, Ghaleb Al Breiki of the UAE University, and Mouna Maroun of the University of Haifa, sign an agreement at Cop27. AFP

John Kerry, US special presidential envoy for climate, at Cop27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. AP Photo

Australian climate activists offer bananas to climate summit participants. AFP

Climate activist Sabrina Elba. AP Photo

Egyptian security forces stand guard during the protest. AFP

US President Joe Biden. AFP

Mr Biden with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. AP

A Cop27 sign in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, provides the backdrop for this woman's selfie. Reuters

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah El Sisi speaks to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi at the climate summit. AFP

A water wonderland greets this child at an acquarium in the Cop27 Green Zone. Reuters

Mr El Sisi, second left, takes part in a cycling marathon on the sidelines of Cop27. EPA

Rafael Grossi, director of the International Atomic Energy Agency, speaks in Sharm El Sheikh about 'complicated' talks to set up a protection zone around Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant. AFP

Frankie the dinosaur. Reuters

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Reuters

Sheikha Shamma bint Sultan, CEO of the Alliances for Global Sustainability; Mariam Al Mheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and Minister of State for Food Security; and Hatem Dowidar, group CEO at e&. AFP

Sameh Shoukry, Cop27 president, centre left, poses for photos in the youth pavilion. AP

A visitor looks at the 'Zero Point' series of collage portraits by Turkish artist Deniz Sagdic, each of which is made from a particular kind of upcycled waste material. Getty

Participants visit the Ukrainian pavillon. AFP

Mr Kerry speaks during a session on accelerating the clean energy transition in developing countries. AP

Youth climate activists. Pictured, from the left, Eric Njuguna of Kenya, Nicole Becker of Argentina, Vanessa Nakate of Uganda, Sophia Kianni from Iran, and Mitzi Jonelle Tan of the Philippines. AP

Muhammad Sulaiman Al Jasser, right, chairman of the Islamic Development Bank Group, poses for a photo with Mohamed Hadi Al Hussaini, the UAE's Minister of State for Financial Affairs. AFP

Kristalina Georgieva, managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Bloomberg

A police officer stands at the entrance of the Sharm El Sheikh International Convention Centre during Cop27. Reuters

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres. AP Photo

Former US vice president Al Gore speaks during a session at Cop27. AP Photo

Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest. AFP