RIYADH, 26 February 2003 — King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology has developed a software program for investors in the agricultural sector that allows them to determine the cost of production of a particular crop, water management techniques, and ways of making the project viable.
“Once you identify the area of cultivation, the program will offer you a choice of the plants that could be successfully grown in that area, the quantity of water and type of fertilizer required, and other relevant details,” Dr. Hassan Y. Al-Ayedh, deputy director at KACST’s Natural Resources and Environment Research Institute, told Arab News yesterday.
He said KACST wanted to market this and other research-backed ideas to the private sector as part of its plan to promote commercial application of its research projects.
He was speaking during the concluding session of the six-year joint research and development program involving KACST and Japan’s Petroleum Energy Center (PEC) at KACST headquarters yesterday. Dr. Saleh Al-Athel, president of KACST, outlined the environmental challenges facing the Kingdom, such as water shortage, coping with future water needs, greening of the desert, and conservation of environmental resources.
KACST research embraced three major areas — technology for the reuse of water, irrigation and water conservation, as well as its application in promoting greenery.
