Qatar gets $200,000 grant to boost genetic engineering

Doha: Qatar will get a facility to promote agro-genetic engineering capacity under the umbrella of the International Fund for Agricultural Development.

The establishment of the centre will be one of the topics under discussion today between Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development's (IFAD) President Lennart BÃ¥ge.

IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialised United Nations agency.

Spiralling food prices and international and regional development programmes in the agricultural field are also in the agenda of the talks, as IFAD gears up for a key Financing for Development Follow-up Conference in Doha in November 2008.

IFAD hopes that the talks will result in a substantial increase in the proportion of official development aid for agriculture and rural development, said a statement issued by the organisation ahead of the talks.

"IFAD approved a grant of $200,000 [about Dh734,842] for the establishment of a Regional Centre for Plant Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology in Doha in support of Qatar's efforts to develop the region's agro genetic capabilities," the statement said. "The centre will contribute to food security and help reduce poverty in the Arab region by helping to increase agricultural production."

Information hub

The centre will develop and promote the application of biotechnology in the agricultural sector to address issues of low productivity and enhance agricultural production and biotech research.

It will also assist the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in strengthening their scientific and technological capabilities in the field of biotechnology by training biotech researchers and serve as a know-how and information hub for regional centres and research institutions in Arab countries.

The Doha discussions will also deal with aspects of operational cooperation between Qatar and IFAD such as the training of Qataris in agricultural projects planning and implementation, participation of Qatari experts in IFAD's project appraisals and evaluation and prog-ress achieved in implementation of IFAD-financed regional research programmes of which Qatar is a beneficiary, the statement said.