On the sidelines of the 77th Session of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 20 September, I2U2 (India-Israel-UAE-US) Sherpas met and expressed their commitments towards the minilateral. The main agenda being, taking stock of the two major projects undertaken during the Leader’s summit in July held in Tel Aviv on a hybrid mode. Setting up food parks across India and hybrid renewable and clean energy storage project in Dwarka, Gujarat, are the two ongoing projects wherein all the partners are committed to work together and deepen their economic partnership. While India’s centrality in the entire dynamics is well noted, what is interesting to comprehend is the prominence given to food security – the latest entrant to the mutual areas of interest.

Food insecurity as a challenge was NOT discussed in the October 2021 Foreign Minister’s meeting in Tel Aviv where the minilateral I2U2 was conceptualized. While New Delhi did not release any official statement regarding the interaction, President Joe Biden’s remarks clearly suggested mutual cooperation in the areas of “energy, climate, trade and regional security”. Israeli statement elaborated by mentioning transportation, technology, maritime security, and economics and trade being the areas of collaboration for the partners. In both instances, food security was not mentioned. Therefore, the dimension was not only added later but achieved top rank in the July Leader’s summit. This confirms the symbiotic relationship between food crisis exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict and it being the prime agenda of I2U2. 

A Food and Agricultural Organizations’ (FAO) report released in June 2022 stated that of the 50 countries direly affected by food crisis due to the ongoing war, 10 are in the Middle East and North Africa, namely, Lebanon, Egypt, Oman, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Tunisia, Iran, Jordan and Morocco. These countries are dependent on both Russia and Ukraine on an average for at least 30 per cent of their wheat imports. What makes matters worse is that most of these countries are either already facing civil war and humanitarian crisis or are economically impoverished. For instance, Egypt imports 70 per cent of its wheat requirements from the two warring countries. Likewise, Yemen’s situation is direr as it not only depends on the two countries for 45 per cent of its wheat imports but is also facing increasing food insecurity and malnourishment due to the civil war. Lebanon with worst economic crisis topped with increasing Syrian refugees’ influx, procures 75 per cent of its wheat from both Russia and Ukraine. And Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) combinedly imports 90 per cent of their wheat imports. 

In that context, New Delhi had approached a few countries in the region to resolve their food dilemma but only Egypt approved India as its wheat supplier. India aims to export around 3 million tonnes to Cairo. However, export controls limited India’s intervention in the matter and its outreach to other regional partners. 

Interestingly, as the I2U2 food corridors and parks seek to address food security challenge in a holistic manner and is therefore based on achieving three main goals, namely, increasing crop yield in India; enhancing Indian farmer’s incomes by supplying them with high quality seeds, equipping them with best possible and emerging agri-tech facilities and by marketing their agricultural products at better rates; and finally to maintain export quality standard to cater to the South Asian and Middle Eastern markets. 

Such an initiative is not only better result-oriented but is likely to be successful as it involves all the stakeholders to bring together their expertise in terms of America’s political commitment, Israel’s top-notch agri-tech technologies, the UAE’s investment and India’s age-old experience in traditional farming, its human capital, vast cultivable land and limited diplomatic hurdles to ease business prospects. Owing to its compounding interests in solving the food issue in South Asia and the Middle east, if and when successful, the project is also likely to resolve the farmer’s depravity in the country.

Under the I2U2 project, the UAE has pledged to invest US$2 billion and the prospective parks will incorporate state-of-the-art climate-smart technologies to reduce food wastage, conserve water and employ renewable energy sources. Notably, Israel is already helping India by creating Centres of Excellences (30 in number) with emerging agri-tech technologies across the country to increase crop yield. While celebrating 30 years of diplomatic relations, Tel Aviv committed to build another 150 Villages of Excellence in India. In an unprecedented move, akin to diplomatic and defence attachés, Israel has appointed Agriculture and Water Attache´s to India in order to holistically pursue agriculture and water conservation. Yair Eshel and Lior Asaf are the current Israeli Agriculture and Water Attache´s to India, respectively. 

To minimize unduly efforts and to maximize the agglomeration economies, I2U2 project must assist, benefit and build on the existing efforts taken by the Israelis. Concerted efforts, technological and financial investments, and increasing resolve to address this ascending food insecurity, should be the driving force behind this un-conventional project undertaken by the partners as it intends to resolve the crisis in two important regions of the world. If and when successful, agricultural exports will be India’s new outreach to the wider Middle East and that is likely to place New Delhi as a very important player in the region. 

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Views expressed above are the author's own.

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