Ever since the start of the illegal blockade of Qatar, the country has been pushing hard to achieve food security and self sufficiency.

The Minister of Municipality and Environment HE Mohamed bin Abdullah Al Rumaihi, stressing on the importance of achieving food security, noted that agricultural production could increase sharply and meet 50% of local needs, reported Gulf Times.

However, the official also noted that a 100% production of local needs may not be possible due to the difficult summer conditions in Qatar.

“In difficult summer conditions, we may not achieve a high level of agricultural production of up to 100% to meet local needs. But God willing, this year we’ll at least double the production to 50% from 20 to 30% in the summer,” Al Rumaihi said, during the closing of the sixth Qatar International Agricultural Exhibition at the Doha Exhibition and Convention Center.

Al Rumaihi said the exhibition greatly benefited participants as they were able to meet specialists in agriculture, livestock and fisheries sectors and gain knowledge from them, reported Qatar Tribune.

The minister also noted that plenty of deals were made between businessmen and farmers, highlighting that foreign companies also benefited greatly from participating as their representatives met with people in the agricultural sector and got all the information they needed. They also got financial support from banks and financial institutions including Qatar Development Bank.

The exhibition also included panel discussions, presentations, reports and open forums, as well as presentation on the most important opportunities and latest technologies that can be used to support the growing agricultural sector in Qatar.