{{item.videoDuration}}
{{item.title}}
{{item.videoDuration}}
The agricultural sector in the GCC faces sizable challenges, including water scarcity and a lack of arable land. Technological solutions can address many of these issues, but farmers are hesitant to invest in them without first seeing them work. One proven way to demonstrate the value of agricultural technology in the GCC is pilot farms. These offer a risk-free area in which farmers can test new technologies and agricultural practices first-hand. Countries that have established pilot farms have improved agricultural yields.
GCC agriculture faces environmental and technical challenges. Environmentally, the region includes three of the world’s five most water-stressed countries,1 which leads to around 70% to 80% of water drawn from the region’s aquifers being allocated to agriculture.2 Moreover, the GCC possesses limited arable land, just 1.4% of its total area, and is more susceptible to climate change than other regions.3 These factors have a negative impact on productivity and yields.
Despite notable increases in GCC livestock and crop production for key goods over the last 25 years, there is room for improvement. For example, technically some 80% of Saudi farms are small holdings that use outdated techniques and manual labor.4 Many farmers lack access to primary processing, storage services, linkages to market buyers, and the latest techniques. Government support for agriculture and increasing demand have driven higher output, but the GCC still imports roughly 0% of its food.5
Fortunately, technologies are increasingly available to master these challenges. These include precision agriculture, hydroponics, vertical farming, aquaponics (raising fish in tanks), desalination and drip systems, agrivoltaics (simultaneous growing of crops and generating solar power), and robotics. These technologies can help GCC farmers to improve yields, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and build production capacity.
In agriculture, however, seeing is believing. Farmers can be skeptical of adopting technologies as they cannot experiment with their crops and livestock. They only adopt technology and techniques that they have experienced firsthand. For that reason, GCC governments can establish pilot farms in which farmers can learn about, and test, these technologies and techniques. Moreover, pilot farms can have an agritourism component where it can be used to highlight traditional agricultural practices that are part of the region’s culture and heritage.
Pilot farms have succeeded in other regions. The United States Department of Agriculture operates a network of experimental farms to test and validate new methodologies, practices, and technologies. That USDA program has helped U.S. farmers implement new practices and technologies that led to significant growth in productivity in yield.
To introduce the pilot farm concept, GCC governments should consider taking three measures.
●
●
●
●
1
Set up considerations
2
Processing facilities
3
Financial support
First, location, scale, and design matter. Governments should locate pilot farms near substantial concentrations of small farmers. Also, pilot farms should be large enough to contain designated zones for various agricultural activities and demonstrations. For example, a pilot farm could include hydroponic greenhouses, equipped with advanced climate control systems and automated nutrient delivery mechanisms, to cultivate such high-value crops such cucumbers, leafy greens, and tomatoes.
Pilot farm design depends on its objectives. Typically, pilot farms include crop fields and greenhouses embedded with technologies of interest, along with collaborative spaces designed for research collaboration, workshops, courses, and meetings.
The right design elements can also appeal to those farmers with a lower appetite and budget for new technologies. Governments can equip pilot farms to educate such farmers about leading practices as a first step toward introducing them to new technologies. Moreover, governments can surround pilot farms with fields and activities dedicated to traditional agricultural practices that showcase the region’s heritage and that add an agritourism component to their value proposition.
Second, pilot farms should include adjacent processing facilities or hubs that can demonstrate key techniques and their benefits. We estimate that such activities can increase farmers’ revenue up to 50% depending on the type of product. These hubs also can liaise between farmers and buyers, alleviating the go-to-market challenges confronting small farmers. Stronger ties to buyers allow farmers to diversify their production, enhance product marketability, profitability, and quality, and reduce food waste.
Third, financial support from governments for pilot farms is needed. Pilot farms are a recent idea that require proof of concept to catch on. They are not designed to be profitable. Government support ensures that they can operate and focus on their main task of demonstrating new technologies to farmers and encouraging the adoption of leading practices. Governments can also offer financing solutions to farmers to allow them to adopt new technologies.
Pilot farms can help GCC farmers integrate modern technologies with traditional practices, thereby creating a more productive and sustainable agriculture sector. More broadly, they can play a pivotal role in helping the region’s agriculture sector advance.
{{filterContent.facetedTitle}}
{{contentList.loadingText}}
{{contentList.loadingText}}
Contact us
Menu