Government delegation reviews Sharjah wheat improvement strategy

Engineer Mohammed bin Taliah, Head of Government Services in the UAE government, and his accompanying delegation, reviewed Sharjah's strategy to develop and hybridize wheat to produce the "Sharjah-1" strain through the first-of-its-kind biotechnology laboratories in the UAE in wheat hybridization and strain development, in addition to artificial intelligence and satellite technologies used in remote control to manage agricultural operations, operate irrigation systems, and measure water quantities to provide daily reports to specialists.

This came during Mohammed bin Taliah's visit to the wheat farm in Maliha, where he was received by Dr. Engineer Khalifa Musabah Al Tunaiji, Head of the Department of Agriculture and Animal Wealth, CEO of the Sharjah Agricultural and Animal Production Corporation "Iktifa".

Engineer Mohammed bin Taliah expressed his happiness with these great achievements, and the increasing attention given by the wise leadership to sustainable food security.

For his part, Dr. Eng. Khalifa Al Tunaiji appreciated Eng. Mohammed bin Taliah's keenness to visit the wheat farm in Maliha, to learn about Sharjah's strategy in wheat cultivation and developing strains, which comes as a translation of the visions and directives of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan bin Muhammad Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, which resulted in the adoption of sustainable agricultural technologies to ensure the quality of the local product, and enhance self-sufficiency in the most important strategic commodity in the world, in addition to producing organic wheat that is of high quality and contains the highest percentage of protein in the world.

He added that integration and coordination between local and federal departments contributes to achieving exceptional successes, combining efforts and harnessing all capabilities to implement comprehensive development plans in the agricultural and animal production sectors, in a way that enhances the vital and strategic capabilities of the UAE in producing sustainable healthy food.

The farm also received special attention from the Sharjah Economic Development Department, where a large delegation visited last year in coordination with the Department of Agriculture and Animal Wealth, with the aim of reviewing and learning about the wheat cultivation project in Sharjah. The delegation toured the green spaces, and learned about the wheat farm, its areas, and its integration with agricultural sustainability projects.

The wheat farm in Maliha received educational trips from the Department of Agriculture and Animal Wealth, with the aim of enhancing the culture of the department's employees about the importance of wheat cultivation and its role in achieving food security.

It is noteworthy that the farm was launched in 2022 to meet food needs, according to modern technologies used in wheat cultivation, with a focus on innovations that contribute to raising the efficiency of agricultural production.