Pact signed to use drone, artificial intelligence for date palm trees project

Muscat: The Directorate General of the One Million Date Palm Trees Project of the Diwan of Royal Court yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Oman Technology Fund (OTF) to use the drone and artificial intelligence technology to serve the project.
The MoU was signed by Dr. Saif bin Rashid Al Shaqsi, Director General of the Directorate General of One Million Date Palm Trees Project, and Yousef bin Ali Al- Harthy, CEO of OTF.
The Oman Technology Fund also signed investment agreements with two Omani companies, Horizon Robotics and Modern Innovation Land, which will provide data analysis, imaging and aerial survey services for the detection and treatment of early diseases and epidemics of the project.
The signing ceremony and the investment agreements were sponsored by Dr. Ali bin Masoud Al Sunaidy, Minister of Commerce and Industry, who said that this project came to assist the government in developing innovative solutions to avoid many pests, as well as the use of technology to solve the problem of expatriate labour as this technology attracts citizens and contributes to the development of the Sultanate’s position by raising the level of competitiveness.
Dr. Al Sunaidy stressed that the process of protecting these innovative projects is carried out through the Department of Property in the Ministry of Commerce and Industry which is interested in the registration of patents, and Al Raffd Fund which has set a certain amount for the registration of patents.
Dr. Saif bin Rashid Al Shaqsi, said that the MoU is the result of constructive cooperation between the Diwan of the Royal Court and OTF, regarding using advanced technology in serving this important project.
He said that the farms of the project spread over large fields and use advanced agricultural technologies, including irrigation systems, cultivation on straight lines and fixed spaces suitable to facilitate the services, using various machines and equipment.
For his part, Eng. Yousef bin Ali al- Harthy, said that the MoU signed today includes three parties, the Diwan of the Royal Court, represented by the Directorate General of One Million Date Palm Trees Project, OTF and Omani innovators selected from amongst the 165 innovators worldwide and with experts from the world to provide the most efficient solutions to meet the challenges facing the government in the field of palm trees.