The GCC countries record advanced performance in the agriculture, livestock and fisheries sectors during 2024

Muscat, 9 March / WAM / The Gulf Cooperation Council countries recorded advanced performance in the agricultural, livestock and fisheries sectors during the year 2024 AD, in an indicator that reflects the growing role of these sectors in supporting food security and promoting economic diversification trends in the GCC countries, despite the environmental and natural challenges the region faces related to the limited agricultural lands and scarcity of water resources.

Data issued by the Statistical Center for the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf showed that the contribution of the agricultural and fishing sector to the GDP at current prices amounted to about 40 billion US dollars during the year 2024 AD, achieving a growth of 5.1% compared to the year 2023 AD, while the sector’s contribution stabilized at 1.7% of the Gulf GDP.

The value of agricultural and fishery exports also rose to $7.8 billion, an increase of 17.5%, compared to imports amounting to $38.7 billion, an increase of 10.1%, reflecting the continued Gulf efforts aimed at raising production efficiency and strengthening the food security system.

It is evident from the general indicators of the sector that this growth was driven by an increase in plant, animal and fish production, in addition to an improvement in the movement of intra-regional trade and foreign trade in agricultural and fishery products.

The total Gulf plant production reached about 12.7 million tons in 2024 AD, an increase of 3.9% compared to about 12.2 million tons in 2023 AD, while Gulf livestock reached about 42.5 million heads, achieving a growth of 3.6% over the previous year.

Vegetables topped the list of plant products in terms of volume, accounting for 45.8% of the total Gulf plant production, which confirms their pivotal position in the food production structure in the GCC countries.

On the other hand, sheep maintained their position at the forefront of Gulf livestock, as they constituted 60.5% of the total livestock in the GCC countries, with a total of 25.7 million heads, followed by goats with about 12.5 million heads, then camels with 3.2 million heads, and cows with about 1.2 million heads.

The report pointed out the great relative importance of goats in some GCC countries, as they represent 64.4% of the total local livestock in the Sultanate of Oman, and 44.4% in the United Arab Emirates.

On the livestock production side, the GCC countries recorded clear growth in a number of key indicators, as table egg production reached about 12 billion eggs in 2024, compared to 11 billion eggs in 2023, a growth of 8.4%.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia topped this index with a share of 70.4%, followed by the State of Kuwait with a share of 10.8%, then the UAE with a share of 9.4%, and the Sultanate of Oman with a share of 8.2%.

Chicken meat production reached about 1.6 million tons, compared to 1.4 million tons in the previous year, achieving strong growth of 17.9%, indicative of the continued expansion of animal and food production chains in the region.

In the fish sector, the GCC countries continued to record remarkable growth, as the total fish production reached about 1.1 million tons in 2024, an increase of 12.2% compared to 2023, to be among the fastest growing food sectors during the year.

This performance reflects the growing interest in fisheries and aquaculture as one of the important paths to support food security and diversify sources of local production, especially in light of the GCC countries’ sea fronts and extensive logistical and investment capabilities.

At the level of land use, data indicate that the total area of ​​the GCC countries is about 2.4 million square kilometers, while the area of ​​land exploited for agriculture did not exceed only 9.2 thousand square kilometers, equivalent to 0.4% of the total area of ​​the GCC countries.

This limited percentage reflects the extent of the geographic and environmental challenges facing agricultural expansion in the region, which prompts the GCC countries to focus on increasing the efficiency of resource use, adopting modern agricultural technologies, and enhancing investments in protected agriculture and fish farming.

In terms of intra-trade, intra-regional exports of agricultural products between GCC countries recorded about $4.8 billion in 2024, compared to $4.5 billion in 2023, a growth of 7.2%, while intra-regional fish exports amounted to about $214.4 million compared to $189.3 million in the previous year, achieving a growth of 13.3%.

These numbers show the growing level of trade and food integration among the GCC countries, and also reflect the growing role of some Gulf countries as regional logistical centers for re-export and redistribution of agricultural and fishery products.

This advanced performance confirms that the GCC countries are continuing to enhance Gulf agricultural integration according to a unified strategy that aims to make optimal use of available water resources, provide food security from national sources, increase production, and encourage joint projects with effective contribution from the private sector.

This approach is based on a number of joint Gulf programmes, including the joint program for coordinating agricultural plans and policies, the joint program for surveys, exploitation and maintenance of natural resources, and the joint program for agricultural food production, in addition to a package of unified agricultural laws that include seed, seed and seedling systems, fertilizers and agricultural soil improvers, agricultural quarantine, agricultural pesticides, organic inputs and products, and management of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture.

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