
Event Overview
In recent years, governments across the Middle East have developed a robust food security strategy for their nations to ensure access to safe, nutritious, and sufficient food all year round. Improving the local produce has been one of the top priorities for these authorities and this has been complemented by the innovations in the agritech space that have helped farms to improve their products in the arid environment.
The COVID-19 situation has increased the need for the MENA region to be self-dependent and is rapidly reforming food security readiness. This has fast-tracked the move by modernizing the food production sector by implementing innovative technologies and practises.
The fourth DigiConference of the MENA Food Security Forum series will focus on the latest trends and innovations in boosting local produce and the opportunities in improving the quality and quantity of local production. This DigiConference will bring together C-suite executives from government, non-government organisations, private sector, and consumers across the Middle East and North Africa along with global tech players.
4th Edition in Numbers

Attendees

Decision-makers

Speakers

Panel discussions

Innovations

Countries

Keynotes

Spotlight session
Post-event Video
Testimonials
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“This conference comes at a critical moment when the world in general and the MENA countries are trying to go through a difficult period where all countries return to agriculture and food security to survive. |
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“The conference was excellent and well organized. It was a pleasure to present ICBAs work to a highly qualified and knowledgeable participants. Their questions and comments enriched the discussion. I hope they will benefit from the take home messages and implement them in their work.” |
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“Participating in the MENA Food Security event as speaker and panellist allowed us to share the suitability of these IGS vertical farm to help deliver sustainable food security in the region. We’ve had a great response to the event already and are engaging with several prospective customers” |
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“The harsh biophysical conditions of the MENA region from water scarcity, poor soil conditions and harsh climates have hindered the expansion of profitable and sustainable agriculture. But we currently live in exciting times when advances in science, information technology and logistics offer unimaginable prospects to advance our food system. It was a pleasure to moderate this session that included representatives from research and development, start-up accelerator, and the private sector to discuss opportunities at hand.” |
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“The conference was very well arranged and presenting remotely was made convenient and easy. I appreciate the timeliness of the topics and the high level and expertise of the speakers and participants.” |
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“The online conference was excellent! Very well organized and all the guests are an added value to the viewers who wanted some solutions or support in what they are doing. Nowadays we believe that we will be living a new revolution of agriculture (Agtech) and we have witnessed the big come back from people to farming and nature. All the best in your coming conferences.” |
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"Conferences like MENA Food Security DigiConference that bring people together from private, public and academia is exactly what is required to take the food security agenda forward" |
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“This event provided great opportunity to get various expertise together to share their knowledge and experience. It opened the platform to give access to all participants to raise questions and highlight different unique issues. Thanks for your effort to arrange such virtual event successfully” |
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“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart! The Keys of agriculture are in the elements, sun, water, soil, air...all have to be balance and everything must be adjusted with harmony” |
Testimonials
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“It was an important and useful conference. It served me well and it was a pleasure to be with you. Please repeat these interesting seminars.” |
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“Thankyou for the Invitation, it was such a great experience and very informative session.Had a real close chance to explore real experiences and suggestions from similar countries delegates that are suffering from the same COVID-19 mess! Appreciate the solutions and ideas suggested in the session.” |
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“Excellently organised. Aquaculture potential of this MENA region is well showcased and the food security issues are addressed carefully. Hope to attract more investments in this region. It is a grand Success.” |
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“This session was awesome and alluring. I learned and enjoyed much with these passionate fellows about aquaCulture. I hope that these activities should be on a continuous basis. In Pakistan, the field is growing and we are hoping for the best .I want to congratulate the organizing committee . I invite more pakistani scholars to join this forum and learn more things.” |
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“It was really good experience to hear from experts on the AQUACULTURE & LIVESTOCK .i hope you will invite me in future for such farming based interesting topic” |
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“The Digi-Connect Conference was excellent. The presenters, the moderators of the panel discussion and the members of the panel were outstanding” |
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“Please accept my sincere appreciation for the outstanding event: MENA Food Security Digi-Conference Aquaculture & Livestock. It was very interesting to hear from highly recognized internationally speakers and panelists to help deliver sustainable food security in the region.” |
Post-event Video
Post-event Video
Testimonials
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“Educating the consumer about healthy options and sustainable consumption is an important factor in achieving food security and sustainability. This forum opens up such discussions to plan the way forward in proposing best solutions that not only address agriculture production but also consumer consumption” |
Event Highlights
The first edition’s 5 Panel discussions raised over 30 questions from the audience in the Zoom chatbox |
57 Regional and International speakers from over 10 Countries shared their expertise |
The first edition saw 3 Keynotes from the Food and Agriculture Organization (UN), Food Security office (UAE) and Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (UAE) |
The second edition’s session raised 229 chat interactions in the Zoom chatbox |
96.23% of the attendees found the speakers informative and engaging |
600+ participants from over 15 countries attended the event, featuring high-level participation from Ministries and Government organizations from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Lebanon, Oman, Jordan, Egypt, South Africa, Finland, and New Zealand |
Technologies from Finland, India, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Switzerland, Belgium, and the USA were showcased at these forums |
98.11 % of the attendees expressed their interest in attending DigiConnect’s future events on food security |
The Expert Panel
Digi-Conference Chairman

Kayan Akram Jaff, Senior Policy Adviser, Food and Agriculture Organization
Speakers & Moderators

Sheikh Dr. Majid Sultan Al Qassimi, Partner, Soma Mater

Dr. Ali Mohammad Al-Shaikhi, Director General, Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, KSA

Mona Siblini, Head of the Horticulture and Field Crops Service, Ministry of Agriculture, Lebanon

Rachid Serraj, Delivery Manager - Regional Initiative on Small Scale Family Farming, Food and Agriculture Organization

Fatema AlMulla, Senior Research Analyst, Food & Water Security Office

Abdulaziz AlMulla, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Madar Farms

Seta Tutundjian, Director of Programs, International Center for Biosaline Agriculture – ICBA

Dr. Latifa Dhaouadi, Assistant Professor, Regional Research Center for Oasis Agriculture - CRRAO, Tunisia

Dr Bhaskar Dasgupta, Associate Director, Market Development, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM)

Yazen Al Kodmani, Operations Manager, Emirates Bio Farm

Kyle Wagner, Head of Operations, Madar Farms

Trevor Mecham, Vice President of Global Technology Strategy & Industry Relations, Valley Irrigation

Dr. Mohammad Shayesteh, Product Manager for Horticultural Solutions, AGCULTURE

David Farquhar, Chief Executive Officer, Intelligent Growth Solutions

Shanni Srivastava, Sub Region Head East Africa & Middle East, UPL

Chafic Moghrabi, Commercial Manager - Middle East, UPL
Spotlight session: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Philippos Papageorgiou, Director of Aquaculture, National Fisheries Development Program, KSA

Dr. Ryan Lefers, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer, Red Sea Farms

Prof. Abdullah M. Alhamdan, Director of CDIT (Chair of Dates Industry and Technology), King Saud University
Why Get Involved?
Hear from the regional ministries, authorities and project stakeholders on some of the regional food security initiatives.
Attend the Technology innovation showcase’ session to know about acclimatisable technologies and methodologies that can be adopted in the Middle East, whether it is growing rice in the desert or growing nutritious food 24 X 7 round the year in an indoor farm.
Learn about the available and most effective technologies in traditional, modern, organic, and smart farming including indoor vertical farming, hydroponics, aeroponics, etc. from leading farm owners and research organizations in the Middle East.
Don’t miss the focused session on Saudi Arabia’s food production sector.
Who will attend MENA Food Security Digi-Conference: Agriculture?
- Government and Ministry
- Municipalities
- Free Zone Authorities
- Non-governmental Organizations
- Food Producers
- Agriculture engineering and consulting firms
- Chambers of Commerce and Industry
- Academia
Conference Program
Gulf Standard Time (GMT +4) | Conference Program |
10:00 | Welcome remarks from the Great Minds Group |
10:05 | Opening remarks from the Chairman
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Session 1 | Innovations in MENA agricultural projects |
10:10 | Opening panel discussion: Middle East food security updates and initiatives
Moderator:
Panelists:
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11:00 | Keynote presentation: UAE’s ambition in becoming a hub for innovation-driven food security
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11:10 | How ADGM and its broader ecosystem helps firms investing in Food Security and AgriTech Dr Bhaskar Dasgupta, Associate Director, Market Development, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) |
11:20 | TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION SESSION: Changing the paradigm of agricultural innovation *This session will highlight key emerging technologies that cater to the MENA Agriculture sector. The session consists of three (10 minute) back-to-back presentations from experts in the industry who will provide insights on successful application of a variety of innovations and case-studies in traditional, modern, organic, and smart farming. Moderator:
Industry insight 1: The future of irrigation – It’s not just a pivot anymore
Chafic Moghrabi, Commercial Manager - Middle East, UPL Q&A With the presenters |
Session 2 | Future of Indoor farming in the MENA region |
11:55 | Fire side chat Guest: Abdulaziz AlMulla, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Madar Farms Moderated by Kayan Akram Jaff, Senior Policy Adviser, Food and Agriculture Organization |
12:15 | TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION SESSION: Indoor farming *This session will highlight key emerging technologies that cater to the MENA Agriculture sector. The session consists of three (10 minute) back-to-back presentations from experts in the industry who will provide insights on successful application of a variety of innovations and case-studies of indoor farming. Moderator:
Q&A With the presenters |
Session 3 | 2021 Market outlook: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Producing for the largest population in the Gulf |
13:15 | Keynote panel discussion: Initiatives and advancements in local production in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Moderator:
Panelists:
Q&A With the presenters |
13:55 | Closing remark by chairman and end of Digi-Conference
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Food Security Digi-Conference Series Partners
Official LED Partner
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Strategic Partner
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Gold Sponsor
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MENA Food Security Series Sponsorship Opportunities
We have a diverse range of sponsorship opportunities available for our MENA Food Security Digi-Conference series. A member of the sponsorship team will work with you to create a bespoke package to suit your businesses objectives.To find out more information emails partnerships@gmevents.ae or call +971 4 568 7800
Register to Attend
Primary | Free of charge |
Solution Provider | 200 USD + 5% Tax 210 USD |
Please note that by registering to attend this virtual executive boardroom / conference you acknowledge and agree that the partners of the event can contact you with the contact information you have provided.