ABU DHABI, 5th January, 2023 (WAM) — The Organising Committee of the "Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Agricultural Excellence Award" has called on outstanding farmers and breeders across the country to quickly apply for the Award, as registrations will continue until 15th January.
Farmers and breeders can apply through the award website www.smaea.ae for all main and subcategories, including the outstanding farmer and breeder, agricultural innovation, and commercial animal and plant farms.
In its first edition this year, the "Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Agricultural Excellence Award" will allow crop farmers, livestock breeders, beekeepers, aquaculture and commercial farms to compete for prizes worth up to AED6.7 million, divided into 56 prizes as well as many competitions to be held as part of the events of the Sheikh Zayed Festival in Al Wathba.
The Organising Committee has set a few controls and requirements for accepting applications for award nomination in its various categories.
The Award, which is generously sponsored by grant of H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Presidential Court and Chairman of ADAFSA, supports the UAE's leading role in the field of agricultural sustainability, as it is one of the key pillars in the comprehensive and sustainable development march.
The Award will support the application of international best practices to improve the agricultural sector, ensure the sustainability of resources, instil innovation, increase production, both plant and animal, and enhance food and biosecurity.
For crop farms, the Award aims to enhance sustainability by motivating farmers to adopt productive practices with economic and social returns, while preserving the environment and increasing productivity in the unit of cultivated area.
It also aims to apply innovative and modern agricultural methods that support the sustainability of resources and the application of climate-smart agricultural systems to allow continuous and diverse production the year.
As for livestock, the Award aims to encourage and honour breeders and commercial farmers, as candidates eligible to win are the ones who apply measures to protect the health of humans, animals and plants and reduce the spread of diseases and epidemics, in addition to following the best practices in nutrition and animal welfare to achieve higher productivity rates.
Several competitions are organised in conjunction with the Award, as part of the events of Sheikh Zayed Festival in Al Wathba, including contests for the best dates produce, the best breeds, the milk competition, the weights competition, a weekly livestock auction, in addition to live cooking competitions for productive families using local produce.
Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Agricultural Excellence Award features three main categories, i.e., "The Outstanding Farmer and Breeder Category", "The Agricultural Innovation Category", and "The Commercial Farms Category".