UAE

Pakistan will press ahead with plans to lease or sell farmland to foreign investors despite United Nations concern over such deals, arguing the land would otherwise lie fallow, Pakistan's foreign minister said.

The fund is in the process of leasing 50,000 hectares of land in Tanzania which will be complete by the end of this year and will mainly be for rice production.

This three years memorandum is not only setting a framework of cooperation but it includes some specific steps such as mutual beneficial arrangements in the agricultural sector (e.g. investment and provision of grain, development of a grain terminal)

The United Arab Emirates has decided to make robust investments in Pakistan’s energy agriculture, education and health sectors, which need huge investment, official sources said yesterday.

Which option is better? Letting the status quo prevail? Or taking advantage of opportunities offered by oil producing countries searching for safe food sources?

“We are in big trouble with the government of Madagascar,” said Shin Dong-hyun, the general manager of planning and finance at Daewoo Logistics Corporation.

Voicing aversion to corporate agriculture farming, speakers at a seminar on Wednesday underlined the need for taking effective steps to counter its adverse effects in Pakistan.

Minister of Economy Sultan bin Saeed Al Mansouri said in remarks late on Tuesday that the UAE's food security strategy, which includes overseas agricultural investments, would be put before the federal cabinet for consideration.

The UAE is looking to Azerbaijan to increase its food security as the two countries signed an agreement that helps pave the way for co-operation in both farming and industry.

Federated Farmers is urging farmers to conduct due diligence after reports that a Maori trust, with reputed backing from Dubai World, has been contracted to buy 28 farms in Southland

The Maori trust has contracted to buy nearly 30,000ha of dairy, sheep, beef and deer farms throughout Southland, but some sellers have raised queries ranging from delays confirming the sales contracts to deposits not being paid as expected.

New Zealand needs to tighten its rules around overseas investment as China and the Gulf States go on a world-wide shopping spree for prime land, said Green Party Co-Leader Dr Russel Norman.