Day: September 24, 2021

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DEWA updates its 2022 strategy to prepare for post-COVID-19 phase

DUBAI, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has organised a workshop to update its 2022 strategy.

Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer, MD & CEO of DEWA, and DEWA’s top management team participated as DEWA is committed to regularly updating its strategy to keep pace with rapid developments.

In his keynote speech at the workshop, Al Tayer said that updating DEWA’s strategic plan is especially important as this year celebrates the UAE’s Golden Jubilee and Expo 2020 Dubai will take place for the first time in the region.

“Thanks to the vision and directives of our wise leadership, the UAE has succeeded in handling the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic to become one of the fastest countries in the world to react to it. Dubai Government has demonstrated its resilience and ability to keep pace with all changes and developments, continue to work in any circumstances, and efficiently manage any emergency or crisis. Drawing on lessons learned from the latest events, DEWA has succeeded in aligning its operations and strategy to address the challenges posed by the pandemic and transform them into opportunities, as well as prepare for the next phase by developing plans and insights to build new foundations and work mechanisms. The regular review of DEWA’s strategy aims to ensure that it contributes to increasing its competitiveness and excellence in anticipating and shaping the future, as well as developing long-term, proactive plans to realise the government of the future,” added Al Tayer.

“We are committed to regularly updating DEWA’s strategic plan to keep pace with all developments in line with government plans and strategies. These include the UAE Centennial 2071, the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050, the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan, and the UAE Strategy for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, among others. I thank all divisions for their efforts during the past period. I urge you to continue the journey to excellence and promote DEWA’s role in making a brighter and more sustainable future. This will support the realisation of the vision of the wise leadership to make the ‘Year of the 50th’ a starting point for another fifty years of progress and prosperity,” Al Tayer concluded.

“Strategic planning is a key pillar for DEWA to ensure we are prepared for the future and achieve its vision to become a globally leading sustainable innovative corporation. At DEWA, we use the latest strategic planning tools, including third-generation Balanced Scorecards and outlining performance indicators and smart objectives to measure efficiency and reliability. This ensures effective execution and continuous improvement of plans to improve work mechanisms to the highest international standards,” said Khawla Al Mehairi, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Government Communications at DEWA.

Source: Emirates News Agency

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UAE reviews National Pathway for Food Systems Transformation at UN Food Systems Summit

DUBAI, The world must act and act now if we are to reach zero hunger by 2030 – that was the message delivered Today by Mariam Hareb Almheiri, Minister of State for Food Security, at the United Nations (UN) food Systems Summit.

Stressing the need for urgency during her speech at the all-virtual summit, which is being held on the side-lines of the UN General Assembly’s 76th session in New York, the minister said that there was no more time for planning in the run-up to 2030 – a timeframe that the UN has designated the ‘Decade of Action.’ She reiterated that the combined efforts of all actors was necessary for the world to meet the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, in particular SDG 2.

“The magnitude of the task that faces the global community in meeting SDG 2 – Zero Hunger by 2030 – is clearly huge. The reality of the situation is that we were already struggling to meet Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. Covid has, in effect, moved the finish line,” said Almheiri.

“What is needed is a concerted and unrelenting effort from all stakeholders – governments, NGOs and citizens – to accelerate the transformation of food systems that is necessary to get the world back on track. There is no more time to talk. We have to act and act now,” she added.

Almheiri outlined how the UAE’s National Pathway for Food Systems Transformation could set a path to lead the global community to reach SDG 2, with its commitment to remodelling its own food security through employing technology, innovation and sustainability, creating a template for other countries to follow.

“In support of the 2030 Agenda, the United Arab Emirates has instituted a National Pathway for Food Systems Transformation that aims to meet its own food security objectives in tandem with delivering on the SDGs. Our vision and pathway for this transformation is derived from the UAE’s Vision 2021 and the National Food Security Strategy 2051, which aims for our country to be a global leader in innovation driven food security within the next 30 years,” she continued.

“Our National Food Security Strategy has five strategic goals that includes strengthening our food supply chains, increasing innovation in our food value chain, reducing food loss and waste, improving food safety and nutrition, and mitigating food risks and crises. The long-term aim of the strategy extends beyond the SDG timeline, but we have already set down firm roots for initiatives that will bear fruit within the next 10 years,” Almheiri added.

During her address, the minister said that while the coronavirus has been an agent of devastation for humanity, it has also been a catalyst for positive change, with the pandemic having accelerated the adoption of technology in business and pushed companies over the technology tipping point, transforming the way they operate. She said that the world should seize this opportunity to effect the same transformative change with its food systems.

Almheiri concluded her speech by highlighting how the UAE’s recently launched Food Tech Valley aimed to triple the UAE’s food production through adopting and implementing the latest technology across the food value chain. She detailed how the new city will use modern farming techniques and the latest agri-technologies to produce over 300 varieties of crops, with the facility representing the future of food.

The UN’s Food System Summit forms part of the UN General Assembly High-level Week, which takes place during the 76th session of the UN General Assembly that runs from September 14-30 in New York. UN Secretary-General António Guterres convened the summit as platform for ambitious new actions and innovative solutions to deliver on the needed transformation of food systems to meet SDG 2 – zero hunger – which is necessary to underpin the other SDGs. The summit aims to set the stage for global food systems transformation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Source: Emirates News Agency