As part of strengthening strategic partnership and cooperation with Arab universities, colleges and research centers, in line with the policy directions pursued by H.E. Director-General Dr. Mohamed Ould Amar, ALECSO participated, as a strategic partner, in the organization of the first session of the International Conference on “Food Security and Environmental Sustainability”, held on March 7-9, 2022 by King Faisal University in Al-Ahsa, Saudi Arabia.
This conference is designed to address the current state of food security at the national, Arab and global levels, and to formulate strategic visions for the adoption of policies that would enhance food security and ensure its sustainability.
The conference was inaugurated by H.E. Dr. Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Sheikh, Saudi Minister of Education. It was attended by high-level personalities from Saudi Arabia along with representatives of Arab, regional and international organizations.
In his address to the Conference, read out on his behalf by Dr. Mohamed Jemni, Director of ICT Department and Acting Director of Education Department, the Director-General of ALECSO expressed his deep thanks and gratitude to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz as well as to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for his “Green Saudi Arabia” and “Green Middle East” initiatives.
The Director-General stressed that ALECSO has always placed the issue of food security at the forefront of its agenda, indicating that its Strategic Plan (2017-2022) included programs on “The Role of Education and Scientific Research Institutions in Serving Food Security.” He recalled, in this context, that the Organization has implemented various activities in connection with the preservation of water resources, the fight against desertification, and the protection of ecosystems in the Arab World.
The Director-General added that the environmental dimension has also been included in ALECSO’s Action Plan for the period 2023-2028. The Organization also works on coordinating efforts to achieve the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals in the Arab World and reduce the development gap between Arab countries. Its action in this regard involves promoting the protection of the environment and natural resources (water, new and renewable energies...), supporting the creation of networks of Arab scientific centers of excellence in priority areas (water resource scarcity, climatic change, desertification, global warming...), valuing the components of biodiversity in the Arab World, strengthening Arab response capacities to crises, disasters and epidemics, and helping to achieve water and food security across the Arab world.
In one of the Conference’s sessions, Dr. Mohammed Jemni delivered a scientific paper on “Smart Technology for Food Security”.
