Ajman dates, honey festival begins July 31

Imran Mojib, Special Correspondent

The sixth Liwa Ajman Dates and Honey Festival will be held from July 31 to Aug.3 at the Emirates Hospitality Centre, Ajman. For the first time, the Ajman Tourism Development Department (ATDD) will also host Ajman Honey Festival along with the Liwa Ajman Dates Festival. The Ajman Honey Festival will be organised in collaboration with Hatta Municipality.

The participants – including UAE University, Sharjah Institute for Heritage, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Khalifa International Award for Date Palm and Agricultural Innovation, Hatta Municipality, Abu Dhabi Police as well as the Municipality and Planning Department Ajman – will exhibit different types of dates and citrus fruit grown in the UAE at 40 booths.

The festival, which is expected to attract more than 15,000 visitors, will include a variety of economic, commercial, cultural and heritage-related events and activities and competitions to support farmers and showcase their efforts.

ATDD Chairman Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi’s keen interest in the festival has contributed to its immense success and development. The festival has become an annual forum for people who are interested in planting palm trees and exchanging opinions and ideas about investing in agriculture, especially as the UAE is famous for a variety of high-quality dates

ATDD Director General Saleh Mohamed Al Geziry said that this festival is organised in Ajman because it is related to the Emirates’ heritage and Ajman’s strategy includes preserving the UAE’s heritage. Palm trees and dates represent one of our ancient heritage and they are significant to the community in the UAE. This is a continuation of the great journey that began with the late Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the UAE’s agricultural renaissance. Moreover, such festivals contribute to Ajman’s tourism sector and economy.

He added, “The Liwa Ajman Dates Festival develops each year. This year, for the first time, the festival will include Ajman Honey Festival in cooperation with Hatta Municipality. Forty participants will exhibit honey products and there will be a special laboratory to assess the quality of the honey, a qualitative addition to events at the festival.”

In a record time, the festival has become an annual forum that delights the people of Ajman, especially palm farmers, and a destination for visitors and tourists from around the UAE. This year, the Festival will include several competitions such as a citrus fruit competition and a competition for local and contemporary desserts.