Fahad Al-Attiya

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Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiya is faced with a daunting task: he needs to make sure that Qatar can become self-sufficient by 2030, the year Qatar’s “National Vision” would be realized. It’s daunting because his country, one of the world’s richest due to gas revenue, averages only 74mm of precipitation (rain) per year. It is one of the driest spots on Earth. So, they survive by importing 93% of their food and desalinating almost 100% of their water. As chairman of the National Food Security Program, he is tasked with making a garden out of their desert of a country.

Achievements

Why Fahad Al-Attiya is Extraordinary

Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiya is not an ordinary lawyer – he is an inspiration. His vision of a self-sufficient Qatar, home to two million people, is incredible in itself. Desalinating their waters is his answer to their annual 74 mm of rain, and this project will make use of one resource they do not at all lack: sunlight. They have 300 days per year of sun and trillions of dollars’ worth of natural gas; he is positive they can use these resources to properly address food and water scarcity.

Heading the National Food Security Program

Fahad was tasked to lead the country’s National Food Security Program, which will be their answer to the growing food-and-water demand. To become self-sufficient, they simply must change the composition of their soil and water. However, this is no easy undertaking.

A country with only enough fish and dates and all else imported began to rise up as the richest country in the world following the discovery of natural gas in their land; this enabled them to afford building a community despite the lack of water. So, how does he plan to make something impossible work?

"The question is, is there a solution? Is there a sustainable solution? Indeed there is... So if we're going to need energy, what sort of energy? A depletable energy? Fossil fuel? Or should we use something else? Do we have the comparative advantage to use another sort of energy? I guess most of you by now realize that we do: 300 days of sun. And so we will use that renewable energy to produce the water that we need. And we will probably put 1,800 megawatts of solar systems to produce 3.5 million cubic meters of water. And that is a lot of water.

That water will go then to the farmers, and the farmers will be able to water their plants, and they will be able then to supply society with food. But in order to sustain the horizontal line -- because these are the projects, these are the systems that we will deliver -- we need to also develop the vertical line: system sustenance, high-level education, research and development, industries, technologies, to produce these technologies for application, and finally markets. But what gels all of it, what enables it, is legislation, policies, regulations. Without it we can't do anything." (SOURCE: TED Talks)

Fahad is hoping that Qatar will create a precedent structure for dry lands like theirs to use the existing resources to address the needs of their people.

Top Reasons why Fahad Al-Attiya is Extraordinary

He is currently the chairman of Qatar's National Food Security Program, which aims to liberate the world’s richest country from their water and food scarcity.
He served in the Royal Military Academy.
He completed his law degree at the University of Westminster in 2005.
He began serving as Chairman of Qatar’s National Food Security Program in 2008.
He has spoken at a TED event.
He serves as a member of the Legislation Council of Qatar.
He served as the Chairman of the Higher Organizing Sub-Committee for COP18/CMP8.
He served as a Legal Advisor in the Office of His Highness the Heir Apparent of the State of Qatar.

Biography

Biography of Fahad Al-Attiya

Date of Birth: | Born in: / Nationality: Qatar

Chairing the COP18/CMP8

In line with the Kyoto Protocol, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change’s Conference of the Parties had been meeting every year since 1995. In its 18th year, Fahad gets to chair the convention in Doha, the capital of Qatar.

It was not free from controversy, as Qatar is said to be one of the leading countries of high carbon emissions because natural gas is their main source of revenue. But for Fahad, hosting the COP18/CMP8 would make their stand clear on the issue of climate change. Carbon emissions make the world hotter, and cause dry places like Qatar to become drier; cooperating with the rest of the world will be the key to addressing Qatar’s food insecurity.

Qatar’s Lack of Food and Water

Qatar is now home to 2 million people, although Qataris only comprise 13% of the population, or about 300,000 people. Before natural gas was discovered in 1939, Qatar was not a nation; its nomadic people roamed the desert to look for water. Communities did not exist because resources were too scarce.

In his TED Talk, Fahad tells the story of his father and mother having dissimilar accents. This was due to people not sticking together for lack of natural resources, and thus developing different dialects. Since the 1940s, the population has increased drastically as their economic capacity has increased by 15% every year. From having an average lifespan of only 50 years old, Qataris’ improved quality-of-life has brought it up to 78 years old.

This economic boost also resulted in higher demand for food and water. As they are a rich country, investing in technology was not a problem. Qatar also desalinates almost 100% of its water. Before the population began to expand rapidly, the much smaller Qatari population depended on aquifers for water; as they earned more income, the country was able to develop state-of-the-art technology to make water scarcity a thing of the past.

But for how long can they elude the water and food crises? As their population keeps growing, they depend more on imported goods. Their land is all dunes – it’s impossible to farm, save for a small part of the country where it can be done at a push. They are still not self-sufficient, even with the help of technology. To grow their own food, they must be able to fertilize their land and have better access to water.

Fahad’s role as the Director of the National Food Security Program is to ensure that Qatar will be ready to grow its own food by 2030, sixteen years from now. So far, two years of research have proven that they can desalinate water using hectares of solar panels so they need not use precious oil and put their monetary security in peril. This will be sustainable and environmentally-friendly at the same time.

Some experts frown at his optimism, claiming it would be wiser to simply invest in growing food where land is already fertile; such has been the practice of other Middle Eastern countries. But Fahad is adamant that he will not only solve his country’s dilemma, but also become a role model for other Arab countries by “putting resources on research.” He is out to prove that, with proper equipment and a heavy dose of courage, they can liberate themselves from food and water scarcity.

Fahad served in the Royal Military Academy from 1998 to 1999. He completed his law degree from the University of Westminster, and served as a Legal Advisor in the Office of His Highness the Heir Apparent of the State of Qatar.

Organizations and Programs Supported

National Food Security Program
Legislation Council of Qatar
State of Qatar’s Permanent Water Resource Committee
Qatar 2022 National Legacy Committee
Board of Governors for the World Water Council
COP18/CMP8
National Vision 2030
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Kyoto Protocol
Conference of the Parties
NAMAs (Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Action)
Global Dry Land Alliance

Awards and Achievements

1998-1999: Served in the Royal Military Academy
2005: Completed his law degree at the University of Westminster
2008: Began serving as Chairman of Qatar’s National Food Security Program
Serves as member of the Legislation Council of Qatar
Served as the Chairman of the Higher Organizing Sub-Committee for COP18/CMP8
Served as a Legal Advisor in the Office of His Highness the Heir Apparent of the State of Qatar

RESOURCES:
TED (Fahad Al-Attiya: Food security expert)
TED Talks (Fahad Al-Attiya: A country with no water)
Keynotes (Fahad Al-Attiya)
QNFSP (About Us)
LinkedIn (Fahad Al-Attiya)
QNFSP (Print this page What is food security?)
Al Jazeera (Q&A: Organiser of Doha COP18)
Singapore International Water Week (Fahad bin Mohammed Al-Attiya)
Trend Hunter (Using Solar Energy to Produce Water)
The World of Energy (QATAR Attaches Great Importance to the Future Generation… Fahad Al Attiyah)
COP18 (Qatar signs formal deal with UN to host climate conference)
Time (Desert Dreams: Can the Middle Eastern Country of Qatar Learn to Feed Itself?)
SPNL (COP18/CMP8 President debate highlights The Hima system)
NPR (In Gas-Rich And Fast-Growing Qatar, A Focus On Food Security)
COP18 (Growing Qatar planning its long term water supply)
Gulf Times (Food, water issues dominate royal visit to Al Safwa farm)