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The inaugural Food For Future Summit & Expo and Global Agtech Expo saw 60+ world leaders, 150+ influential speakers, the world's top startups, innovators and food revolutionaries, unite with purpose to collectively inspire new agtech and food tech solutions through innovative thinking, multi-disciplinary expertise and collaborative action.
The event was hosted by H.E. Mariam Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change & Environment, UAE and in association with United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. Organised by World Trade Centre and powered by Gulfood.
Find out how you can be a part of this game-changing movement in 2023.
We are proud to host the Food For Future Summit & Expo that brings together like-minded stakeholders from around the world to explore innovative ways of advancing the global transition to sustainable food systems
COUNTRIES
GLOBAL LEADERS
SPEAKERS
HOURS OF EMPOWERING CONTENT
Deep dive into Agriculture 4.0, croptech, farming and health, aquaculture - slated as the fastest-growing sector in the food animal industry, expected to hit US$275 billion by 2025.
Some of the world's best startups, innovators and food revolutionaries unveil their high-impact ideas, making it the perfect platform to source frontier technologies in food security.
Natural edible coatings extending the life of fresh produce to eliminate waste
Developed a patented platform called FAR (Flying Autonomous Robots) for automated seeding and harvesting
Revolutionary monitoring system for heat sealing inspection that reduces food and packaging waste
Creating cultured meat using 3D printing, where they’ve successfully bioprinted the world’s largest cultured steak (3.67 oz)
International ministerial delegations and high-level executives unite efforts with innovators to ensure sufficient, sustainable, nutritious food for all.
Minister Ministry of Climate Change and Environment
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Agri-Innovation and Climate Adaptation), United Kingdom
CEO Singapore Food Agency
Minister Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Spain
Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources Bahamas
CEO EAT Foundation
Director of Quality Assurance and Origin Green Bord Bia, Irish Food Board
Senior Director, Manufacturing, Agribusiness & Services International Finance Corporation, World Bank Group
Founder Sustainable Urban Delta Foundation
Co-chair Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens & 8th UN Secretary-General
Global Director, Agriculture and Food World Bank Group
Interim Director, Agricultural Development Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Deputy Minister for Digital Development Digital Transformations and Digitalization, Ukraine
Minister of Agriculture, Ethiopia
Minister of Agriculture, United Republic of Tanzania
Executive Director, Food Sector NEOM
Deputy Director, Health Education & Promotion Department Ministry of Health and Prevention
COO Parks and Zones, DP World UAE
Global Director Systems Transformation, CGIAR & Director General, IFPRI
Programme Officer Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations
Food and Climate Correspondent Thin Ink
Group Chief Executive Officer and Founder Blue Aqua International
Chief Executive Of?cer iwi Life
Head of Smart Agriculture Siemens Middle East
Country Director World Food Program, Palestine
Managing Director Good Food Institute Asia
Country Director World Food Program, Egypt
Minister of State for Agriculture (MoSA), Uganda
Director Partnerships & Special Projects Department, Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, UAE
Permanent Secretary Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Nigeria
Director-General Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Minister for Food and Agriculture Ghana
Chief Operating Officer Ban Ki-moon Centre for Global Citizens
Goodwill Ambassador UN World Food Program
Executive Director Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition
Regional Coordinator of the Resource Efficiency and Sustainable Consumption and Production, West Asia UNEP – United Nations Environment Program
ADM President EMEA
Executive Director Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN)
Digital Leader Cargill Inc.
CEO Agritecture
Deirdre has extensive experience in the food industry with a strong track record of driving impact through by embedding sustainability into business strategy.
In her role as Director of Quality Assurance and Origin Green at Bord Bia, Deirdre is responsible for driving the Origin Green ambition; that farms and food manufacturing businesses throughout Ireland sign up to the sustainability agenda, with progress independently measured, assessed and verified. Origin Green plays a crucial role in driving continuous improvement across Ireland’s food and drink sector, with significant reductions achieved to date in carbon emissions on farm and in energy and water use in processing and manufacturing. The ultimate aim of the programme is to safeguard Ireland’s global reputation and competitive advantage as a producer of quality sustainable food.
Prior to her appointment, Deirdre was Head of Corporate Social Responsibility for Lidl Ireland & Northern Ireland, where she led the development and implementation of Ireland and Northern Ireland’s sustainability strategy. From 2013 to 2015, as part of Bord Bia’s Origin Green Ambassador programme, Deirdre was responsible for building trade awareness globally for the sustainability credentials of Irish food and drink producers.
Deirdre has also held positions with leading dairy exporter Ornua, Nestle Switzerland, and Metro Group, the world’s fourth largest retail group.
Deirdre holds an MSc in Business Sustainability and an MBS in International Business from UCD Smurfit Graduate School, and a Commerce International with Italian from University College Dublin. She is also an Irish Olympian; she competed in the high jump at the London 2012 Olympics. Deirdre is also a board member on the Board of Sport Ireland since July 2021.
Tomasz Telma, Senior Director, Manufacturing, Agribusiness & Services at IFC, member of the World Bank Group.
a member of the World Bank Group and the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Based in Washington DC, he is responsible for managing IFC’s investment and advisory services in a broad range of sectors including agribusiness, manufacturing, health, education, tourism, retail and property. He leads a team responsible for over $5 billion of new investments annually and a portfolio of over $20 billion of investment and more than 100 advisory projects.
Tomasz has more than twenty-five years of experience leading investment transactions in emerging markets. Immediately prior to his current assignment, he was IFC’s Director for Europe and Central Asia. In that role, he was responsible for the full range of IFC’s investment and advisory operations in that region.
Enock Chikava is interim Director of the Agricultural Development Program at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Global Growth and Opportunity division. He leads the Agricultural Development team whose aim is to support country-led inclusive agricultural transformation across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, by developing and scaling products, services, policies, and system-wide innovations that benefit smallholder farmers, empower women, and improve nutrition.
Enock, has more than 30 years’ experience in Agriculture, with a career spanning Farmer Organizations, Seed Industry; Agribusiness, Food Processing and now Philanthropy. Enock Chikava is former president of the African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA). Previously, he was Director Business Development, SSA, and Commercial Lead for a Seed, Chemistry, and Biotech for several MNCs. He studied Agricultural Economics, Marketing Management and Business Strategy. He was born and raised on a small-scale farm in Zimbabwe and during his career in Agriculture, has worked with farmers and partners in 30+ countries in SSA and lived in Kenya, Malawi, Switzerland, and South Africa, before moving to the United States.
Dr. Ernest A. Umakhihe has over Thirty-One (32) years of working experience in various functions in the Public Service. He started his professional career in 1988 as an Accountant with the National Institute for Oil Palm Research (NIFOR) and rose to the position of Director Finance and Accounts in 2007.
He transferred his services to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation in 2012 where he served as Deputy Director, Audit Monitoring Department. Dr. Umakhihe also served as Director, Finance and Accounts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where he supervised the Finance and Accounts functions of the Headquarters and the Nigerian Diplomatic Missions Overseas.
His first posting as a Permanent Secretary was to the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget & National Planning in 2019, after which he was redeployed to the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation as the Permanent Secretary, Common Services Office. Thereafter, he was served as the Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Works & Housing until 2020. He currently serves as the Permanent Secretary of the Nigerian Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
He is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN); Chartered Institute of Administrators of Nigeria (CIAN) and a Fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM). Dr. Ernest Afolabi Umakhihe holds a PhD in International Diplomacy and conflict Resolutions from the Nasarawa State University, Master of Business Administration Degree from the University of Benin and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting from the same University.
Honourable (Hon) Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto graduated from the University of Ghana (Legon) with a Bachelors Degree in Agricultue. He also holds M.Sc. and PhD degrees in Agricultural Economics from the University of Cambridge, England. He worked as an Economist, Senior Economist, Principal Economist, and Chief Economic Advisor over a period of 18 years at the International Coffee Organization (ICO) in London, England. He has also worked as a consultant to the World Bank and the United Nations on Soft Commodities (Cocoa, Coffee, Sugar). Between 1995 and 2007, he was the CEO of two international commodity companies, Goldcrest Commodities Limited and Plantation Resources Limited both based in Ghana.
In 2008 he was elected to the Parliament of the Republic of Ghana. He spent two terms as Member of Parliament for Kwadaso Constituency in Kumasi, Ashanti Region. In Parliament, he held the positions of Deputy Ranking Member and subsequently the substantive Ranking Member for the Committee on Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs until 2017.
In 2017 he was appointed the Minister for Food and Agriculture. In this role he has spearheaded the design and implementation of the Government of Ghana’s popular and transformational agricultural flagship programme, Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ).
Under the leadership of Hon. Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto Ghana has been transformed into the breadbasket of West Africa – moving from “not being on track” in 2017 to “being on track” in 2019 on the African Agriculture Transformation Scorecard (AATS). In that same year (2019), Ghana was ranked fourth on the African continent by the Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU) in its Global Food Security Index (GFSI).
In February 2019, Africa Seeds which is the intergovernmental Seed Agency of the African Union, conferred on Dr Akoto the title of SEED CHAMPION OF AFRICA. Later the same year, he was appointed Chairman of the Board of the Inter African Coffee Organisation (IACO), a pan-African organisation promoting the interest of coffee producers on the continent; a term he finished serving in December 2020.
He is the current Chairman of the ECOWAS Specialised Ministerial Technical Council for Agriculture (CTMS Agric) and in June, this year was unanimously appointed Chairman of the Steering Committee for the newly established Côte d’Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative
She has over a decade’s experience in sustainability, climate change, clean energy, and organizational management. Having lead business development, strategic growth and communications at an international non-profit organisation for clean energy access, she combines her academic backgrounds in language studies and international development to enhance the impact of SDG-related projects, programmes and organisations.
Katrin has managed projects in Africa and Asia in partnership with UN agencies, the EU, and development agencies, where she put her focus on capacity building, market development and public-private dialogue, sustainability in agri-food value chains and in managing international knowledge exchange amongst experts in energy efficiency, energy regulation and international law.
Ismael Roig is president, Europe, Middle East and Africa, leading strategy and growth activities across the region. Ismael also oversees the company’s efforts to improve the efficiency and environmental footprint of its operations and is a member of ADM’s Executive Council. Ismael joined ADM in 2004 and previously served as president, Strategy. He has also served as president, Asia-Pacific, and vice president, Planning and Business Development.
Prior to joining ADM, he spent 11 years with General Motors Corporation in various finance and control positions in Brazil, Singapore and Belgium. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Reading, UK, and a master’s degree in industrial engineering from the Cranfield Institute of Technology, UK. He holds an MBA from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia and holds a Chartered Financial Analyst® credential.
Mr. André Laperrière joined the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN)initiative as its first Executive Director, in September 2015. During his career, Mr. Laperrièrehas led/managed numerous projects on behalf of large Private Corporations andsubsequently, within the United Nations and the World Bank. In this context he played asenior role in the design and the implementation of major reforms within a number ofagencies such as the International Criminal Court (ICC), the World Health Organization(WHO) and UNICEF. He has extensive work experience in the Americas, Caribbean, Africa,Europe and the Middle East, in particular in developing countries and in conflict/post conflictenvironments.
Before joining GODAN, Mr. Laperrière was Deputy Chief Executive Officer at the GlobalEnvironment Facility (GEF) in Washington DC. Among other positions, he has also been thefirst Executive Director of the Trust Fund for Victims at the International Criminal Court (ICC),Director of the Administration and Finance Division in the World Health Organization (WHO),and Coordinator for reconstruction and rehabilitation activities under the responsibility ofUNICEF in Iraq.
Prior to his career in the UN, Mr. Laperrière was Director in the International Services ofPrice Waterhouse. In this position, he led multiple large scale business evaluations,privatizations, mergers and structural reform projects in Europe, Africa, the Americas andCaribbean. Mr. Laperrière was born in Canada, where he completed postgraduate studies inAdministration and in Industrial Relations. Mr. Laperrière is an expert in internationaldevelopment.
For the first time, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization partners with UAE’s Ministry of Climate Change and Environment to advance the transformation of agrifood systems in the Middle East.
Assistant-Director General & Regional Representative of the Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa - FAO
Deputy Director-General World Trade Organization (WTO)
Sub-Regional Coordinator FAO
Chairperson Committee on World Food Security (CFS)
Minister of Agriculture Ministry of Agriculture, The Republic of Lebanon
Chief Scientist Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
Chief Economist Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
Secretary, Committee on World Food Security (CFS) The World Bank
FAO
CEO AgriTech Accelerator, Jordan
President & CEO Enactus
Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation and Fish Wealth – Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation and Fish Wealth, The Republic of Yemen.
Head of the Innovation Accelerator United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)
Senior Economist FAO
Permanent Representative of Switzerland United Nations Organizations in Rome, Italy
Ex-Vice President & Founder/Director World Bank & Library of Alexandria
Islamic Development Bank Group, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
Programme Coordinator Arab Regional Office, International Telecommunication Union
President AGRA
Vice Mayor of Milan since 2016 and Deputy Mayor for Education.
Co-Founder Industry Distruptors Game Changers and CEO Agro Challenge
Economist FAO RNE (moderator)
Head of International legal department, FGBI Agroexport, Russia
Minister of Agriculture Animal Industries and Fisheries, Uganda
Bloomberg distinguished professor Global Food Policy and Ethics and Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and the Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University.
Agro-food industry officer FAO's regional office
Director of Strategy Mohammed VI Polytechnic University.
Deputy General Manager Berytech
Partner Bizilance Consultants
CEO SOMAMATER
Mr. Elwaer, a national of Libya, holds a Ph.D. of Philosophy in Environmental Chemistry from Sheffield University, the United Kingdom, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Organizational Leadership from the Gestalt Centre of Organizations and Systems Development in the United States, and a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering and Science Technology from the University of Sabha in Libya.Mr. Elwaer served as Secretary of Environmental General Authority (Minister of Environment) of the Government of Libya in Tripoli and was elected President of the African Ministerial Congress on Environment (AMCEN) from 2004 to 2006.In 2007, he joined the African Union as Director for Human Resources, Science and Technology, and became Director for Administration and Human Resources Management in 2009.During his career at the African Union (AU), Mr. Elwaer has supervised and managed the Establishment of several African unique initiatives and institutions.Prior to joining the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), he served as Adviser to the President on Global Advocacy and Partnerships at the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he also served as the IsDB Spokesperson and Director of Cooperation, Partnerships, Regional Integration and Resource Mobilization from 2014 to 2017. He was further appointed IsDB’s Sherpa at G20 and Heads of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).
From 2019, Dr Dino Francescutti Motis is the Sub-regional Coordinator of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for the Gulf Cooperation Council States and Yemen , FAO Representative in the United Arab Emirates. He is Mexican and Italian, with a Ph.D. in Economics and a M.Sc. in Agricultural Economics from the USA and a B.Sc. in Animal Husbandry from Mexico. From 1982 to 1991, he worked in Mexico as Project and Financial Analyst and in the USA as Researcher and Professor while completing his graduate studies. In 1991, Mr Francescutti joined FAO as Food Security Officer. From 1995 to 2019, he worked as Economist and Senior Economist of the FAO Investment Centre, in Rome (Italy) and Santiago (Chile). He was often Officer-in-Charge for the Investment Centre Service, covering Latin America and Caribbean, Europe, North Africa and Middle East. He provided substantive technical support to most countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, but also in some countries in Africa and Asia. He was instrumental in the development of capacity development tools of FAO for investment related work, from identification to results assessment. Currently, he leads the development of the FAO programme of work in several GCC States, in support of the food security strategies of member countries. In the UAE, he currently facilitates policy and technical dialogue between FAO, other UN agencies and the Government in support of strengthening strategic frameworks and actions around food and nutrition security and sustainable agriculture, aquaculture and livestock development
Dr Ismahane Elouafi is Chief Scientist of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, and part of FAO’s core leadership structure. With nearly two decades of experience in agricultural research and development in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, Dr Elouafi is known for promoting neglected crops, non-fresh water in agriculture, and women in science. Dr Elouafi has been a member of numerous boards and research institutes. Her contributions to science have been recognized with prestigious awards and accolades, including the Excellence in Science Award from the Global Thinkers Forum. Dr Elouafi holds a Ph.D. in Genetics.
المسؤول الإقليمي للبرامج بالمكتب الإقليمي للشرق الأدنى وشمال أفريقيا – منظمة الأغذية والزراعة، القاهرة، جمهورية مصر العربية هو مستشار زراعي ومتخصص في إدارة الموارد المائية، ولديه أكثر من 30 عامًا من الخبرة في التعامل مع القضايا المتعلقة بالتنمية الزراعية في الشرق الأدنى وإفريقيا وآسيا، مع التركيز بشكل خاص على قضايا الأراضي والمياه، والتكيف مع تغير المناخ وسبل العيش الريفية. في عام 2015، انضم إلى الفريق المسؤول عن تطوير برنامج الفاو الاستراتيجي للزراعة المستدامة. ومنذ فبراير 2019، ينسق السيد فوريس جميع البرامج لمنظمة الأغذية والزراعة في إقليم الشرق الأدنى وشمال إفريقيا.
Mr. Elwaer, a national of Libya, holds a Ph.D. of Philosophy in Environmental Chemistry from Sheffield University, the United Kingdom, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Organizational Leadership from the Gestalt Centre of Organizations and Systems Development in the United States, and a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Engineering and Science Technology from the University of Sabha in Libya. Mr. Elwaer served as Secretary of Environmental General Authority (Minister of Environment) of the Government of Libya in Tripoli and was elected President of the African Ministerial Congress on Environment (AMCEN) from 2004 to 2006. In 2007, he joined the African Union as Director for Human Resources, Science and Technology, and became Director for Administration and Human Resources Management in 2009. During his career at the African Union (AU), Mr. Elwaer has supervised and managed the Establishment of several African unique initiatives and institutions. Prior to joining the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), he served as Adviser to the President on Global Advocacy and Partnerships at the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where he also served as the IsDB Spokesperson and Director of Cooperation, Partnerships, Regional Integration and Resource Mobilization from 2014 to 2017. He was further appointed IsDB’s Sherpa at G20 and Heads of Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs).
Mr. Ayman Amin Sejiny is chief executive officer of the Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), the private-sector arm of Islamic Development Bank Group. He has more than 28 years’ experience in investment and corporate banking in local, regional and international markets. He previously served as CEO of Barclays Capital Saudi Arabia and worked at Citibank, Saudi American Bank and Saudi Hollandi Bank. Mr Sejiny is a board member of Kidana Development Company, a joint-stock company owned by the Royal Commission for Makkah Al-Mukarramah and the Holy Sites, and a member of the investment committee of the King Abdullah Foundation (Almadena Almonawara). Mr. Sejiny is Board and C-Level performer with vast experience in innovating financial processes and products. Mr Ayman holds a BA in Finance from Eastern Michigan University, United States.
Dr. Kalibata has served as the President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) since 2014. She leads the organization’s efforts with public and private partners to ensure a food secure and prosperous Africa through rapid, inclusive, sustainable agricultural growth, improving the productivity and livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers in Africa. Under Dr. Kalibata’s leadership, AGRA is working to increase the incomes and improve food security for 30 million farming households in 11 African countries by 2021 through targeted investments to strengthen 3 core areas: state capability and policies, input delivery systems in agriculture, and partnerships for inclusive agricultural growth. From 2019-2021, Dr. Kalibata also served as the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the 2021 Food Systems Summit. In this role, Dr. Kalibata worked with the United Nations system and key partners to provide leadership, guidance, and strategic direction for Summit, ensuring it successfully served as a catalytic process at the start of the Decade of Action to improve food systems around the world to deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement. Prior to joining AGRA, Dr. Kalibata was Rwanda’s Minister of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) from 2008 to 2014, where she drove programs that moved her country from a food insecure to a food secure status and became a reference point for other countries that sought to deliver agriculture transformation. Dr. Kalibata also sits on various boards, councils and commissions including the Global Commission on Adaptation, the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, the Global Panel for Agriculture & Food Systems for Nutrition, the Global Agriculture & Food Security Program (GAFSP), the Global Agenda Council of the World Economic Forum, the Malabo-Montpellier Panel, and Africa Risk Capacity, among others. Dr. Kalibata has a distinguished track record as an agricultural scientist, policy maker and thought leader. She was awarded the Yara Prize, now the Africa Food Prize, in 2012, an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Liège in 2018, an Honorary Doctorate from McGill Univeristy in 2019, and the National Academy of Sciences’ Public Welfare Medal in April, 2019 for her work to drive Africa’s agricultural transformation through modern sciences and effective policy thereby improving livelihoods of stallholder farmers. Dr. Kalibata holds a doctorate in Entomology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Anna Campagna. Vice Mayor of Milan since 2016 and Deputy Mayor for Education. From 2017 she is in charge of the Milan Food Policy. As City Councilor, in the mandate 2011-2016, she focused on rural-urban linkages, becoming also Metropolitan Councilor and member of the board of the Agricultural Southern Milan Park. She has a Master Degree in Physics, and she worked on data analytics and learning tools.
A Creative Systems Thinker and Successful Social Entrepreneur with Innovation at Heart Carla is a successful entrepreneur with strong social leadership. A citizen of the world with deep intercultural understanding and international experience having lived in 3 continents US, Middle East and Europe, she’s leading a global initiative for the future of Food & Agriculture. She started working from a young age and managed to have successful exits. Carla is the co-founder and managing partner of Industry Disruptors-Game Changers (ID-GC), a non-for-profit organisation empowering the youth towards innovation and entrepreneurship in Greece and abroad. Carla is focused on the Future Agro Challenge (FAC – www.facagro.com), a global agrifood innovation platform, which is the main initiative of Industry Disruptors as an effort to create a new generation of farmers and agripreneurs. FAC, since its inception in 2015, is continuously growing now operating in 64 countries across 5 continents. Carla has recently been called upon to become the Dean of the Institute at ACS Athens, a premiere school empowering individuals to transform the world as architects of their own learning. Carla, is also a visiting lecturer in Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the top-rated international MSc program of the Athens Medical School (internal evaluation 2016) in collaboration with Alexander Fleming Biomedical Science Research Center, in Molecular Biomedicine, training the next generation of Biomedical Researchers and Innovators. She is part of the Global Entrepreneurship Network, a TEDx advocate and organizer, as well as, a member of the United Nations Committee of World Food Security Private Sector Mechanism and Youth Council Advisory.
Dalia is a development practitioner and sustainability researcher with 15 years of experience in the Middle East. As an Economist at FAO’s Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa, Dalia is responsible for several cross cutting areas of work including territorial development, rural migration, decent employment, youth and social protection. Her work ties together the need for accelerated poverty reduction and inclusive growth through sustainable and integrated natural resource management. Prior to joining FAO, Dalia led assessments in the fields of waste to energy, alternative fuel and solid waste management as well as worked with USAID on building regional research capacity in the area of climate change adaptation and water scarcity. She holds BA in political economy from the American University in Cairo and an MSc in environment and development from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Daria carries expertise in international economic law, particularly on trade barriers and international agreements. She has undertaken extensive legislative research in the field of technical and SPS regulation in the international trade. She also conducts capacity building and training courses at Moscow State Institute of International Relations. At present she is working with Agroexport under Ministry of Agriculture, Russia, primarily focused on analysis of market access conditions and non-tariff barriers. In her previous assignment, Daria participated in governmental working groups on export support and served an expert in the WTO trade disputes. From September 2018 until March 2019, she headed the Legal Department of the International Trade and Integration Research Center. She participated in the creation of the “Interactive Guide for Russian exporters” and led a project on use of ionizing radiation in the food industry. As an independent expert, Daria has participated in numerous expert councils of the Eurasian Commission and has been a team-leader in three international research projects, concerning surveillance transformation and dispute resolution in the Eurasian Union. Nowadays she is working on building the quality infrastructure on the territory of the Eurasian Union. Since June 2019, she has also been a Responsible Secretary of the Committee of the Eurasian Business Committee on trade and economic relations with China. Daria holds a Master degree from Russian Foreign Trade Academy and a Bachelor from Kutafin Moscow State Law University (MSAL).
He is the current Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries a position he assumed on 21st June 2021. Prior to that, he served as Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development from December 2019 to June 2021, Minister of ICT and National Guidance from June 2016 to December 2019 and Minister for the Presidency and Kampala Capital City between 2012 and 2016. He has been the Member of Parliament representing Kibale County and currently Kibale East in Kamwenge district since 2006 on the National Resistance Movement political party ticket. He holds a Bachelor of Science in education specialising in Math and Physics from Mbarara University of Science and Technology, a Masters in International Relations and Diplomatic Studies, a Masters in Public Health from Makerere University and a Masters of Business Administration of ESAMI (pending graduation). Prior to joining elective politics, he among others worked with Uganda Revenue Authority as a Customs Officer and Office of the President as Special Presidential Assistant on Research and Information. He is passionate about Governance, Agriculture, ICTs for development, Innovation and communication. He is a frequent author on topical issues in the traditional and wider media platforms. He hails from Kamwenge district in the Rwenzori region, Western Uganda.
Jessica Fanzo, PhD in the Bloomberg Distinguished Professor of Global Food Policy and Ethics and Vice Dean of Faculty Affairs and the Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University. She holds appointments in the Berman Institute of Bioethics and the Bloomberg School of Public Health. She serves as the Director of Hopkins’ Global Food Policy and Ethics Program, and as Director of Food & Nutrition Security at Hopkins’ Alliance for a Healthier World. She is the Editor-in-Chief for the Global Food Security Journal and leads on the development of the Food Systems Dashboard, in collaboration with GAIN. From 2017 to 2021, Fanzo served on the Food Systems Economic Commission, the Global Panel of Agriculture and Food Systems for Nutrition Foresight 2.0 report, and the EAT-Lancet Commission. She was also the Co-Chair of the Global Nutrition Report and Team Leader for the UN High-Level Panel of Experts on Food Systems and Nutrition. Before coming to Hopkins, she has also held positions at Columbia University’s Earth Institute and College of Medicine, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the UN World Food Programme, Bioversity International, and the Millennium Development Goal Centre at the World Agroforestry Center in Kenya. In 2021, she published her first book, Can Fixing Dinner Fix the Planet? and co-wrote Global Food Systems, Diets, and Nutrition: Linking Science, Economics, and Policy. Fanzo holds a Ph.D. in nutrition from the University of Arizona and completed a Stephen I. Morse postdoctoral fellowship in immunology in the Department of Molecular Medicine at Columbia University.
Maryam Rezaei is an agro-food industry officer with FAO's regional office for the Near East and North Africa. She leads the work on value chain development, provides technical support and strategic guidance on agribusiness, market linkages and food loss and waste. Previous to this role, Maryam was a Food Systems Advisor with the Food Systems and Food Safety division at FAO. Prior to joining FAO, Maryam worked with governments, private sector agri-food businesses, NGOs and international development organisations. She managed and supported the design, implementation and evaluation of projects and programmes, focusing on improving sustainability and resilience of agri-food value chains. Maryam has an MSc in Food Science and Technology from Ecole Supérieure d'Agricultures d’Angers in France.”
Director of Strategy at Mohammed VI Polytechnic University. Prior to his current position, Dr. Serraj was the Delivery Manager of the Regional Initiative on Small Scale Family Farming and Rural Transformation, in Near East and North Africa, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Senior Project Officer with the Secretariat of the Science Council of the CGIAR. From 2010 to 2012 he was Director of Diversification & Sustainable Intensification of Production Systems (DSIPS) at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA). Dr. Serraj has an extensive experience in research and development and occupied several positions in various international research centres and organizations such as IRRI, IAEA, ICRISAT. He holds a PhD in crop science and agronomy from Montpelier University, France in 1987. He is author of more than 250 publications and several books, international reports, and studies.
Ramy Boujawdeh joined Berytech in 2014 as the Deputy General Manager. He has been leading the Incubation and Entrepreneurship Business Development arm that supports innovative Lebanese startups and SMEs, providing Business Support, Mentorship, Coaching, Fundraising, Hosting, Networking and Internationalization and part of Innovation and Entrepreneurship regional programs. He designed and leads the A.C.T. Smart Innovation Hub initiative, a first of its kind in MENA focusing on both Agtech and Cleantech. He is also the manager of the Regional Innovation Hub (RIH) in the MENA Region for the Water and Energy for Food (WE4F) challenge fund. Between 2000 and 2014, Ramy amassed a diversified knowledge in the fields of change management, quality management, operations, as he filled roles in General and Regional Management in different industries across 3 continents. He is keen on mobilizing his knowledge and connections to the best interest of the stakeholders he supports. He advises startups in Lebanon and is an Angel Investor with SEEDERS. Since his return to Lebanon, Ramy has been actively supporting social causes such as education, sustainability, agriculture, environment, gender equity and economic development. Ramy is the Vice President of a Lebanese NGO – Rural Entrepreneurs, and is part of the External Advisor Board of the Faculty of Agriculture and Food Science at the American University of Beirut. He is also a member of the council of representatives at the order of Engineers and Architects. Ramy was named as a Board member representing all Non-EU Members including Lebanon, in the European Business & Innovation centers Network (EBN). Ramy holds a bachelor’s degree in Agriculture Engineering from AUB, and a master’s degree in Business Management and Economics.
Saifullah Khan is an International Trade, Technology and Policy Lawyer, has extensive experience in the areas of international trade policy, privacy and personal data protection, both in advisory and policy roles. He has a special focus over data space, where he has critically studied the General Data Protection Regulation of the European Union and has carried out a benchmarking of the same with personal data protection laws of other jurisdictions like Pakistan, Malaysia, California, Brazil, Canada, Bahrain, UAE etc. He is advising his international clients about the compliance requirements that are to be met once law on this subject is enforced in Pakistan. He has prepared and reviewed the privacy policies and intra-group agreements concerning cross-border transfer of persona data. He is studying the evolving postulate “data as a right or data as an asset” and in this regard is analyzing potential regulatory issues in the areas of agriculture, manufacturing, trading, services etc. He has contributed a number of articles on privacy and data protection published by Global Legal Group’s International Comparative Legal Guide, Mondaq, Lexology, Financier Worldwide, OneTrust etc. He is member of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) and has done a course from London School of Economics and Political Science on “Data: Law, Policy and Regulation”.
Sheikh Dr. Majid Sultan Al Qassimi. Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at Saint Istvan University in Budapest, Hungary. He started his work as a veterinarian in the zoo and conservation field and moved into an administration role in 2013 as a Director to oversee the Terrestrial Biodiversity and conservation activities at the Environment Agency of Abu Dhabi. From 2015 to 2021 he was the Chief Veterinary Officer of the UAE and Advisor to 2 Minister regarding all things Food and Agriculture, at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, UAE. His work as a policy maker brought him to the center of Food Security, Sustainability and Biodiversity for the UAE and the Arab world, looking to create clear direction for the UAE and the Middle East on how technology, sustainable agriculture and traditional practices can create a food production revolution in the region. After Developing the Food Diversification strategy for the UAE with the Food and Agriculture Organization, Sh. Dr. Majid has the ability to see both a holistic "all of country" approach to Food Security, as well as dive down into specific technical subjects to navigate challenges and opportunities. He sits on multiple boards of Accreditation Authorities, UAE Food Safety Committee, and on multiple other Food, Animal and Agriculture Boards. He is a founding partner at SOMA MATER where he continues to develop Food Security and Sustainability strategies and solutions for private sector and governments. He has a keen interest in engaging the youth to further career choices in STEM subjects, and as one of the first veterinarians from his country, he plays a vital role in supporting veterinary education and awareness, through public speaking, advising the university curriculum.
Corporates and start-ups are leading the way in creating world-conquering change. Hear from C-Suite change-makers on their tech breakthroughs driving more sustainable, equitable food systems.
Director SDG2 Advocacy Hub and Chefs’ Manifesto
Associate Director & Campaign Lead Emirates Nature-WWF
Head of Technology and Innovantion, Food Sector NEOM
Co-founder, Vence; Advisor, Ocean Harvest, Founder & CEO Pure Harvest
Partner, Food & Agriculture Practice McKinsey
Professor of plant science King Abdullah University of Science and Technology
Global Manager, Manufacturing, Agribusiness & Services IFC
Forbes Magazine’s Powerful Women Shaping the Future of Food; Founder & CEO Edible Planet Ventures
Senior Director Culinary EMEA - Hilton
Deputy General Manager Emirates Bio Farm
Former Deputy Minister, The Republic of Maldives & President, SEAS Institute
Co-founder & CEO InnovaFeed
Manager Open Aquaculture, Food Sector NEOM
Founder and Managing Director Goumbook
Founder & CEO Optas app & One Modern World
COO Tindle
COO Verticroft Holdings
VP Communications, Public Affairs & Corporate Responsibility Talabat
Co-Founder and Business Development Director DANA
Head of Added Value Products Unit Tanmiah
Manager Permits and Applied Nutrition Section, Dubai Municipality
CEO SAVRpak
CEO & Founder My Farm Dubai
Director of Sales
Head of MENA GSMA
Investment Associate Venture Souk
CEO Tanmiah
Head of Nutrition Health and Wellness, Nestlé
Director Digital Products – Asia Pacific Cargill India
General Manager Ripe Organic
Environmental Affairs Lead Fisheries Development Oman
Associate Provost for Students Affairs United Arab Emirates University
Managing Director and General Partner SAVRPak Middle East
President ALPS Inc.
Founder & CEO Green Fields LLC
Executive Vice President, Factory Automation & Motion Controls Siemens Middle East
Founder & CEO Madar Farms
Managing Director EPIC Total Water Solutions
Founder METAL International
Founding Partner SOMA MATER
CEO & Co-founder ALGAMA
Program Leader on Sustainable Natural Resources Management International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA)
Founder Wild & The Moon
Entrepreneur and CEO Green Tech Global
Co-Founder EroeGo
Founder and CEO, Fresh On Table
Insights Director GSMA AgriTech programme
CEO AgUnity
Sustainable Lifestyle Expert UNEP West Asia
CEO Water Garden Organics
General Manager Emirates biofertilizers Factory
Business Development Director Certhon
Founder and General Partner PeakBridge
CEO Dutch Greenhouse Delta
Founder and CEO Verticroft Holdings
Founder & CEO Dibba Bay Oysters
Former Deputy Minister The Republic of Maldives & President, SEAS Institute
Acting Managing Director AGRF and Head of Partnerships AGRA
BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA WINNOW SOLUTIONS
Supply Chain Director Bateel International
Product Owner Gourmet Hub
Vice President Controlled Environment Agriculture, urban-gro, Inc.
Hotel Manager Palazzo Versace
Founder Oasis Greens
VP Strategic Partnerships & Chief of Party, PIATA; Responsible for Digital, Youth and Women AGRA
Tatiana Antonelli Abella is the Founder and Managing Director of Goumbook, a Social Enterprise dedicated to raising awareness among the local community on Sustainability and Green Living: launched in 2009 it was the first green information resource for the MENA region.
Goumbook is one of the oldest Social Enterprises in the UAE and today it manages different projects such as Sustainable Mena, a business directory dedicated to promoting sustainable products and services in the region; the Give a Ghaf Tree Planting Program, the only tree planting initiative of the GCC with over 95,000 seeds planted in the past 10 years, and the Drop It - Rethink Plastic campaign to help businesses and individuals stop using single use plastic.
Tatiana sits on the Engage Committee, under Dubai Chamber of Commerce·V umbrella and has been nominated Environmental Ambassador for the Middle East Youth Expo. She also acts as an advisor to events such as Art Dubai or the Emirates Literature Festival to help them be more sustainable. Since 2012 she has been proud to be a judge of the Gulf Capital SME Awards fRU Whe ¶MRVW SXVWainable BXVineVV Rf Whe YeaU·. In 2020 Tatiana also joined the Advisory Board of the Gulf Sustainability Awards.
In April 2019 Tatiana started Forward Talks, a weekly podcast highlighting leaders and professionals who, through their work, entrepreneurship and commitment promote positive impact and sustainability in the UAE and beyond.
During her 16 years in the UAE, Tatiana has garnered a strong reputation and she is actively involved in the green arena: considered one of UAE's top environmental influencers, she contributes regularly to media and at conferences in her role as a green business leader in the country
Meghna is a Serial Entrepreneur with fifteen years of global experience in various industries. Her ambition is to create a positive impact by providing sustainable solutions lead her to creating three start-ups in sustainability, filling a necessary market gap from consultancy to sustainable products (One Modern World) and a sustainability app, (Optas).
Having lived and worked in various countries gave her a better understanding of different cultures, industry trends, and market practices.
She turned her passion for sustainability into reality thanks to persistence and dedication. Prior to launching sustainable business concepts, she achieved significant corporate knowledge in business development, with expertise in international business expansion and growth in new markets.
She aims at creating, living, and breathing the start-up cultures, values, and behaviour. Setting strategy and directions, implementing short and long-term plans without never losing faith and confidence in what she does.
Syed Zulfiqar Hamadani is the Chief Executive Officer of Tanmiah Food Company, the 2nd largest fresh poultry brand in Saudi Arabia. Zulfiqar Hamadani is a professionally qualified accountant from the Institute of Chartered Accounts of Pakistan. He started his career with the ITM Group as Financial Manager in 2000, rising to be the Financial Controller for the Asia Pacific region based out of Dubai, UAE. Zulfiqar joined the Tanmiah Food Group in 2007 as the Group Chief Financial officer, followed by taking over as the Chief Operating Officer in 2012. In 2019 Zulfiqar Hamadani was appointed CEO of the company, and in 2021 presided over a successful and heavily oversubscribed IPO that released 30 percent of Tanmiah’s shares onto the Saudi Stock Exchange. He has been instrumental in spearheading the sustainability initiatives at Tanmiah, four times revenue growth in eight years, and is also a recipient of multiple awards & certificates; and regularly speaks at regional and local conferences.
Today, Tanmiah employs over 2,500 people across its operations. It slaughters approximately 350,000 birds per day, supplies quality processed chicken products to fast-food giants like McDonald’s, Burger King, and Subway, and is heavily invested in creating a circular economy.
Sarah Kanaan is the Head of NHW at Nestlé Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which owns and operates eighteen factories. Nestlé MENA provides direct employment to over 13,000 people and indirect employment to several thousand more.
Sarah started her career at Nestlé Middle East as a Market Nutritionist in 2013, then became NHW Manager in 2016 and is currently holding the position of Head of Nutrition, Health and Wellness for Nestlé Middle East and North Africa. In her role, Sarah is responsible to strengthen Nestlé’s NHW drive across all business categories such as Dairy, Food, Coffee, Nestlé Breakfast cereals, Nestlé Nutrition, Confectionery and Nestlé Health sciences; focusing on Innovation &Renovation for tastier and healthier products portfolio while ensuring responsible brand NHW communication and compliance to marketing to children policy.
Prior to joining Nestlé Middle East, Kanaan worked at the National Defense of Canada, managing health promotion programs, and at Dairy Farmers of Canada, overseeing early childhood programmes. She has also worked as an instructor at the Nutrition and Food Sciences Faculty at the American University of Beirut, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in infant and adult nutrition. She also served as a Clinical Dietitian specializing in diabetes at Dubai Health Authority.
Kanaan is a regular spokesperson on nutrition and has contributed a wide range of articles to a number of international magazines on hygiene, food safety, HACCP, nutrition during pregnancy, infant nutrition and other areas of public health.
Kanaan holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Nutrition & Dietetics from the American University of Beirut and a Master’s Degree in Nutrition & Food Sciences from the University of Montreal, Canada.
Raman Saxena is the Director of Digital Products for Cargill in Asia Pacific and founder of Digital Saathi. This digital solution—built for smallholder farmers—improves direct access to markets and supports farmer livelihood and mutual stability across the agri-value chain. Raman has more than twenty-four years of experience in information technology. In his 20-year background with Cargill, he has been instrumental in building IT capabilities across the Asia Pacific region. He has been part of major IT transformation strategies and executed them with excellence. In his last role as IT leader for Food Ingredients and Animal Nutrition business in Cargill’s Asia Pacific region, he led the Process Data Technology strategy, driving digital innovations and major IT investments and solutions for the enterprise.
His stints before Cargill include four years with Philips India as part of corporate IT. Raman has a post graduate degree in Business Administration and graduate degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering.
Raman is married with two children and lives in Delhi, India. Outside work he likes traveling, spending time with family and friends and watching sports.
Rumaitha Al Busaidi is an Omani marine scientist and environmental activist actively working on implementing sustainable solutions to battle against climate change. Back in May 2021, Rumaitha debuted her TED talk garnering over a million views worldwide where she looks at women as the key to our climate future.
Rumaitha currently serves as Group Manager for Business Development and Sustainability for Oman’s fisheries investment arm, Fisheries Development Oman. Recently named member of the Arab Youth Council on Climate Change, Rumaitha has previously worked with the Omani government on implementing sustainable diversification strategies in food production, and internationally advised the Biden administration on developing a climate resilience standard for US foreign aid focusing on empowering women as a form of climate mitigation. Rumaitha holds multiple Masters degrees from Utrecht University and Harvard University.
Demonstrated history of working in the information technology and in the horticulture/agriculture industry.
Educated knowledge about greenhouse technologies, indoor farming, food safety and sustainability
Fresh On Table founder and CEO Atul Chopra is a serial entrepreneur and recognized game-changer.Starting his professional journey as an Investment Banker he pivoted to become a Tech entrepreneur in early 2000.He went on to create one of India’s early success stories of Telecom product companies which went global.Post that he turned into an active investor, mentoring, and seeding several startups.He founded Fresh On Table in 2019 with a vision is to boost sustainability through food, by cutting the travel times and distance of produce.
From a modest proof of concept in France, his company are among those at the forefront of the UAE’s food security ambitions, which today remains an evolving benchmark for food security in the entire Gulf region.He has teamed up with some of UAE’s most revered hotels and restaurants, opening their eyes to the UAE’s incredible choice of local produce and ingredients
With this comes greater transparency and traceability, improved freshness and taste and reduction of carbon footprint.
Atul is a Chartered Accountant and lawyer by training.
Daniele is the insights director of the AgriTech programme at the GSMA, the global association of the mobile industry uniting more than 750 operators with 400 companies in the mobile ecosystem. GSMA AgriTech brings together and supports the mobile industry, agriculture sector stakeholders, innovators and investors in agritech to launch, improve and scale impactful and commercially viable digital solutions for smallholder farmers in the developing world.
The Generation Food stage will host a variety of workshops spanning different topics related to food for the future global population. Join in interactive sessions and learn directly from experts making a difference in how we produce, improve and consume food in a more sustainable and healthy manner.
CEO BMTA&C
Founder of Nourishing Africa and GAIN and AGRA Board Member
Market Nutritionist Nestlé Middle East and North Africa
Business Executive Officer Nestlé Professional, Nestlé Middle East and North Africa
Sales Manager Certhon
Market Developer Priva
Commercial lead Agriculture Lighting Signify
Research Officer Abu Dhabi Public Health Center
Co-Founder & Director The Green Spoon
Co-Founder and General Partner PeakBridge VC
Membership & Outreach Emirates Nature WWF
Student & UAE Ambassador for Nature
Campaign Leader Goumbook
Strategy Leader Goumbook
Partnerships Leader Goumbook
Curator Emirates Soil Museum
CEO BE WTR
CEO Edmond de Rothschild Private Equity
Co-Founder & Head of Research The Green Spoon
CEO Hexagro
Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer Cupmena
Music Producer Music Producer
CEO Volta XR
CEO Thought for Food
Steward Prime DAO
Operations Lead KlimaDAO
MENA Regional Coordinator Thought for Food
Leader One Young World
Senior Associate Sia Partners
Thought for Food
CEO InfinityBox
COO Volta XR
Co-Chair Generation Africa and Steering Committee Member AGRF
Founder & CEO KRISPR
Co-Founder The Waste Lab
Food Tech Entrepreneur specialised in creating & building leading, technology driven, consumer brands & establishing new categories.
Following a degree in Food Industry Management from UC Davis Mike participated in the creation of the fresh pasta category in San Francisco and later was among the founding team of Nespresso as the 1st Nespresso CMO and head of B2B being instrumental in the journey from startup to +100$ Million (Nespresso today is a +5$ Billion business. Following the Nespresso experience Mike was the co founder of Eden Springs Europe and as CEO built a business of +200$M, participated actively in the European Bottled Water Association which he presided, and later brought Danone as a JV partner to Eden Springs.
Mike's main focus today is on impacting positively the planet with better, more responsible water hydration with www.bewtr.com. BE WTR innovates in upgrading tap water with patented technologies that positively impact taste, user experience and striving to make better, more abundant hydration.
Additionally Mike’s holding company is leading another technology company, AudioVitality, www.audiovitality.com as it stands to transform our well being and allow the maximisation of our potential through non invasive, low vibration technology.
Johnny El Hachem is the CEO of Edmond De Rothschild Private Equity SA. He joined the EDR Group in 2002 and worked closely with all the departments of the firm, initiating numerous financial transactions, including the launch of funds, and originating transactions on the capital markets. He initiated and structured a range of Private Equity funds, including:
Johnny studied Financial Engineering at ESSEC Business School (Paris), Banking and Finance and Political Science at the Lebanese American University of Beirut. He is also a visiting Professor at the Business Management University of Geneva. Johnny is fluent in French, English and Arabic.
First university & school pitch competition unveiling incredibly creative ideas and new thinking on the future of food
universities
projects submitted
The Winner: Heriot Watt University of Dubai with Macro Label170 teams
schools shortlisted
The Winner: Raffles World Academy with Project Latent Labels
First food tech challenge setting the stage for truly revolutionary startups and highstakes prizes to win
teams
countries
The Winner: Manhat
The Runner-Up: Farms Not Arms
Uniting local agricultural companies and farmers to showcase the freshest produce, and become frontrunners in domestic production and food selfreliance. First In Fresh, Our Participating Companies: