Date: October 19, 2020
Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC) participated in the World Food Day 2020 celebrations commemorated in Oman under the auspices of Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources. The ceremony was held under the patronage of Dr Saud bin Hamoud Al Habsi, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources.
World Food Day is commemorated annually around the world on 16 October in remembrance of founding the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations in 1945 as an organisation that deals with global food and agricultural issues. World Food Day is celebrated by millions of people in almost every single country around the world since its inception in 1979.
Ali Shaker, Advisor, Business Development and Strategic Partnerships, Zubair SEC represented the Zubair SEC at the celebration which included participation from Ministry of Health, Ministry of Higher Education, Sultan Qaboos University, Consumer Protection Authority, Authority for SME Development (Riyada) , Muscat Municipality , Nizwa University, Asharqiyah University, University of Technology and Applied science, Industrial Innovation Centre, Oman Technology Fund, Oman Food Investment Holding, Omani Agricultural Association, Omani Fishermen’s Association among others.
The three key points discussed at the event included producing, consuming and buying local products – promoting and empowering food heroes; food health and safety and prospects for innovation in agricultural and fish production and marketing in Oman, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Speaking about the celebration Ali Shaker said, “The theme of World Food Day 2020 was ‘Grow, nourish, sustain. Together. Our actions are our future’. The event underlined the role of cooperation and partnership between private, public sector and international organisations such as FAO in the development of this segment. Zubair SEC ‘s participation demonstrated the importance the private sector plays in the development of small food producers, farmers and fishermen.”
The Centre highlighted the business challenges facing this target segment of skills such as organising financial tables, marketing, and developing business identity to compete in the market. Zubair SEC focussed on the initiatives and programmes it has worked, and some of the future programmes it intends to work on in cooperation with the Ministry and FAO.
With an intention to design a project that aims at strengthening the role of Omani SMEs in achieving food security in Oman, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations has signed a letter of agreement (LOA) with Zubair Small Enterprises Centre (Zubair SEC) in March last year. As per the framework and scope of LOA, Zubair SEC will design a project that aims at strengthening SME’s contribution to food security in Oman.
Zubair SEC and FAO had earlier collaborated in raising awareness of Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs) by hosting FAO representative in Oman as the key speaker at a special ‘Tajribati’, a monthly dialogue session designed for SMEs. The session was a great success and attracted a large number of audiences who showed keen interest in knowing about SDGs and the role of SMEs in the area.