Against the backdrop of the desert outside Doha, the capital of Qatar, several large vegetable greenhouses stand out like an oasis.
Those are not just any vegetable greenhouses.
The vegetables there are not grown in the field but in soilless multi-layered containers. Each row of growing vegetables is equipped with a tube in which, instead of ordinary water, a nutrient solution is flowing for the vegetables to grow.
The vegetable greenhouses are a vivid example of how Chinese agricultural technology is helping to improve vegetable cultivation in countries along the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which was launched about ten years ago.
Located on the southwestern coast of the Persian Gulf, Qatar relies heavily on imported vegetables, meat, and other agricultural products due to limited arable land and freshwater resources. Since the end of 2019, the Institute of Urban Agriculture (IUA) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) has been providing advanced planting techniques to local agricultural companies in Qatar.
Read more at china.org.cn