Mariam Almheiri Highlights Agricultural Innovation at COP29

Mariam Almheiri, Head of International Affairs at the Presidential Court, emphasized the transformative role of partnerships and technology in addressing climate-related challenges in agriculture during her participation at COP29 in Baku.

Building on the UAE’s collaboration with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced at COP28, Almheiri spotlighted progress in advancing agricultural innovation over the past year.

At the UAE Pavilion, Almheiri engaged in a fireside chat co-organized with CGIAR and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The session, titled "Partnering to Create AI-based Public Goods for 500 Million Smallholders," explored the potential of generative AI, such as large language models, to provide smallholder farmers with accurate and accessible agricultural extension services. Almheiri highlighted the AgriLLM pilot project, leveraging the UAE’s Falcon LLMs to empower researchers and extension agents with reliable, AI-driven decision-support tools.

Martien van Nieuwkoop from the Gates Foundation commended the UAE’s commitment to smallholder farmers, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, emphasizing the importance of innovative tools to combat climate challenges.

Almheiri also participated in the “AIM for Scale” event, which focuses on scaling agricultural innovation for small-scale producers. She stressed the importance of equipping farmers with localized weather forecasts to improve decision-making on planting, harvesting, and risk management.

The UAE demonstrated its leadership by launching the AI-based Weather Forecasting Research and Training Programme, led by the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence (MBZUAI). The program will collaborate with global partners, including the World Meteorological Organization and the University of Chicago, to develop cutting-edge AI forecasting techniques and train professionals from over 30 countries.

In addition to these advancements, the AIM for Scale initiative introduced its first Innovation Package, designed to provide actionable solutions for farmer-centered weather forecasts in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). The event successfully mobilized $1 billion in funding commitments to support this cause.

The UAE reaffirmed its dedication to fostering a global ecosystem of agricultural innovation, aligning technological advancements with climate resilience efforts. Almheiri underscored the UAE’s vision of reimagining food systems to accelerate the transition to a sustainable and net-zero future.

News Source: Emirates News Agency