Agricultural Production in Qatar’s Hot Arid Climate

Sustainability

Sami Sayadi¹  Theodora Karanisa¹  Renee Richer²  Alexandre Amato³  Cynthia Skelhorn³  Sara Abdul Majid⁴ 

[1] Center for Sustainable Development, College of Arts and Sciences, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713 Doha, Qatar;Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Wisconsin—Green Bay 2420 Nicolet Drive, Green Bay, WI 54311, USA;Qatar Green Building Council, Qatar Foundation, Education City, P.O. Box 5825 Doha, Qatar;Retro Technical Services, 204 Gate D1, Maarid Al Waab, Salwa Road, P.O. Box 22087 Doha, Qatar;

关键词: agriculture;    hot arid climate;    Qatar food security;    agricultural policy;    urban food production;   

DOI  :  10.3390/su13074059

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Agriculture has played an essential role in the provision of food and has been a major factor in overall economic development for societies around the world for millennia. In the past, agriculture in hot, arid countries like Qatar faced many challenges, the primary one being a dearth of water for irrigation. Historically this severely limited Qatar’s economic development, which was based largely on resource exploitation, pearl fishing, and only more recently, on the exploitation of its oil and gas reserves which subsequently has led to Qatar’s great wealth. This paper gives an overview of the recent evolution of Qatar’s agricultural sector and investigates future trends that tackle the challenges of its hot arid climate and the limited availability of agricultural resources. Specifically, the review analyses Qatar’s potential to develop a national food security strategy based on a significant expansion of food production in the country. We review recent policy actions implemented to address challenges in the food supply chain caused by a 3.5-year blockade imposed by the adjacent Arab Gulf States, discussing the renewed interest in the potential that an enhanced agricultural sector must provide some aspects of food security and the implications for policymakers that would logically ensue.

【 授权许可】

Unknown