Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Tolerance, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation, has launched a new book entitled 'Date Palm in the UAE' featuring the UAE's achievements in the field of date palm cultivation and date production from 1971 to 2019.

"The date palm tree is a national treasure and has a long history in the UAE, not only as a source of food but also because of its psychological and cultural connection to the Emirati people," Sheikh Nahyan said during the launch of the book, issued by the General Secretariat of the Award on the occasion of the celebrations of the UAE's 48th National Day and the Year of Tolerance.

The book is set in 324 pages of hard bound, including seven chapters, documented in pictures and references.

He added that agricultural activity in the UAE, date palm cultivation and date production in particular are an important pillar for achieving sustainable development, in addition to being a major source of food security for members of the community, and to diversify the sources of national income.

"From this point of view, the founder of the UAE's agricultural renaissance, late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan regarded agriculture as a mainstay of construction and development," he said.

"We see in it the foundations and roots of our civilization and the source of the power that has contributed to the preservation of many of our generations. Experts were not encouraging agriculture and saying that its growth in our land and in this climate is impossible, and we told them, let's try. God bless us, and we succeeded in turning our desert region into a green zone. This encouraged us to continue.

"With these words, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan summarised the process of development in the field of date palm cultivation and date production, which has been witnessed in the UAE since he was a Ruler of Al Ain in 1946, and during that period he took over leadership in Abu Dhabi in 1966, then continued the progress and development when he assumed the presidency of the State of the Union in 1971 until His Highness passed away in 2004."

Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan renewed loyalty and commitment to remain faithful to the vision of the Founding Father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan by preserving his agricultural heritage and to follow in the footsteps of President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and the support of H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs.

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