Saudi-based National Prawn Company (NPC), the world’s largest integrated shrimp producer, is planning an initial investment of $300 million (Dh1.1 billion) to start large-scale fish production in Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries. The aim is to farm king fish, cobia, barramundi, mahi and milk fish using aquaculture installations on waste coastal desert land.
As the Gulf's agricultural production rates slow and food prices around the world continue to rise, GCC members are investing heavily in the fertile lands of Africa and Asia.
This analysis looks at how the oil-rich Muslim economies could leverage their existing relationships with agriculture based Muslim economies (which have a wide productivity gap with the worlds net agriculture exporters) taking them to globally competitive levels; reaping for themselves high investment returns, securing their own food sources, and contributing to alleviation of the food crisis from other Muslim countries.
The fund, which will invest in commercial agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa, has dual-purpose - to ensure returns in the range of 15-20 per cent, while the investment helps to create jobs and give rural Africans the chance to help themselves out of poverty. Currently, cru has significant exposure to commercial agriculture in Malawi with over 2,500 hectares of land under its own control and another 4,000 hectares in outgrower schemes.
Some experts believe that the emphasis should be on overseas agricultural investments as well as a boost in trade relationships, due to the unavoidable handicaps to domestic agriculture.
Arabia is phasing out its domestic wheat growers and seeking to shift production overseas.
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries must invest in foreign arable land to boost its food supply and increase food security in the region in the long term, Standard Chartered economists said on Tuesday.
GCC countries face growing constraints in agricultural capacity. Structural factors are exacerbating pressures on food prices. A new report from Standard Chartered supports additional investment in agriculture.
The UAE and other Gulf oil producers are considering creating a giant fund to invest in farm in fertile Arab areas and other nations to slash a soaring import bill and ease reliance on foreign markets for their food.
The rulers in the Persian Gulf are looking at other ways of ensuring food security. Rather than rely on the vagaries of the market and unstable import sources, countries across the GCC, through sovereign wealth funds and development agencies, are seeking to buy up the means of production itself.
Gulf countries contemplating direct agro-investments in central Asia and Africa should evaluate the relative merit of these investments in comparison to similar potential in Europe and Latin America, the Gulf Research Centre said in a recent report.
Gulf countries contemplating direct agro-investments in central Asia and Africa should evaluate the relative merit of these investments in comparison to similar potential in Eur-ope and Latin America, the Gulf Research Centre said in a recent report.
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