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Dates award moves beyond date palms

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Dates award moves beyond date palms
The new Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation award will reward Dh4,250,000 to researches, innovations and best practices in agriculture.File photo

Abu Dhabi - Khalifa award extends to all agricultural fields.

By Silvia Radan

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Published: Sun 14 Feb 2016, 11:00 PM

Last updated: Mon 15 Feb 2016, 8:35 AM

 The seven-year old Khalifa International Date Palm Award no longer crowns achievements only in the field of date palm farming and research. Instead, it is extending to all agricultural fields.
The new Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation (KIADPAI), which will reward Dh4,250,000 to researches, innovations and best practices in agriculture, will be officially announced during a special ceremony on March 15, in Abu Dhabi.
"The new award has been designed to reward researchers and stimulate innovations that provide proper solutions for the future food needs of the world," said Professor Abdelouahhab Zaid, secretary general of KIADPAI. "It will also benefit from the global expertise of participants in the different categories of the award to find the best means to improve the real conditions of agriculture," he added.

Prize money for each winner in the 5
categories:
> Dh 1m- Distinguished Studies
and Modern Technology category
> Dh1m - Pioneering Development
and Productive Project category
> Dh750,000 - Distinguished
Producers in Date Palm Sector
 category
> Dh750,000 - Pioneering
and Sophisticated Innovations
Serving the Agricultural Sector
category
> Dh750,000 - Influential
Figure in the Field of Date
Palm and Agricultural Innovation
category
According to Dr Hilal Al Kaabi, chairman of the administrative and financial committee of KIADPAI, the award will have five categories, but unlike the previous date palm award, this time there will be just one, not two winners per category.
Participants who have already prepared and submitted their entries for the date palm award may re-enter them in the new one, which has a category specifically for date palms.
"In the previous years, the total participations in the various categories of the award was about 1,000, representing 39 countries around the world," pointed out Dr Al Kaabi. As Professor Zaid said that opening the award's door to all agricultural innovation fields, and not just date palm farming, will attract 10 times more the number of participants each year.
"The Scientific Committee will look to reward the submissions that our arid region can most benefit from, but this is also an international award, meant to help agriculture everywhere around the world, and that will be taken into consideration as well; it will be a case by case judging," Professor Zaid told Khaleej Times.
Applications for KIADPAI will be accepted from May 1 until October 31 and winners will be announced in February, 2017.
silvia@khaleejtimes.com
 


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