I2U2 Group to launch joint food security, clean energy initiatives

The I2U2 Group is set to launch joint food security and clean energy initiatives.

Israel, India, the US, and the United Arab Emirates held a meeting on Thursday to discuss these initiatives, among other areas of mutual interest.

The meeting was held at the inaugural I2U2 Group meeting, the nations’ heads of state said in a joint statement.

“This unique grouping of countries aims to harness the vibrancy of our societies and entrepreneurial spirit to tackle some of the greatest challenges confronting our world, with a particular focus on joint investments and new initiatives in water, energy, transportation, space, health, and food security.”

The I2U2 stands for India, Israel, the UAE and the US which was previously referred to by the UAE’s Ambassador to India Ahmed al-Banna as the ‘West Asian Quad.’

The leaders said they intended to mobilize private sector capital and expertise to bolster efforts in the carbon development space, improve public health and access to vaccines, modernize infrastructure, and advance connectivity between Middle Eastern countries.

They aim to achieve these objectives by devising new solutions for waste management, connecting startups from their respective countries to I2U2 investments, explore areas for joint financing and promote the development of critical emerging and green technologies, in addition to tackling the current global food and energy insecurity crisis.

At the inaugural meeting, the leaders focused on clean energy and the food security crisis, highlighting ways in which they could ensure “longer-term, more diversified food production and food delivery systems that can better manage global shocks.”

Home to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and host of the 2023 climate change conference COP28, the UAE will invest $2 billion in developing a series of integrated food parks across India which will incorporate cutting-edge, climate-smart technologies to reduce food waster, conserve fresh water, and deploy renewable energy sources.

India will provide the land needed for the project and facilitate the integration of farmers into the food parks.

Companies operating in the US and Israeli private sectors will be invited to offer their expertise and solutions that can play a role in contributing to the overall sustainability of the project.