Tathmeer launches integrated Agri-Tech centre at SPARK in Sharjah

Tathmeer Agri Tech has launched what it describes as the MENA region’s first Integrated Agri‑Tech Innovation Centre in partnership with Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park (SPARK), establishing the facility on a dedicated plot within SPARK in Sharjah. The centre will host demonstration, testing and validation facilities for agricultural technologies — including controlled‑environment agriculture, hydroponics, vertical farming, automation, IoT systems and AI‑enabled monitoring — and will integrate Tathmeer’s FarmBridge digital platform to connect producers, investors and buyers.

“The partnership reflects the organization’s focus on attracting companies that combine technology, applied R&D, infrastructure, and market access to address areas such as food security and sustainability,” said Hussain Al Mahmoudi, Chief Executive Officer of SPARK.

The new centre is being positioned as a practical testbed where farmers, startups and technology providers can trial solutions under operating conditions before commercial deployment. “The centre would allow farmers to test agricultural technologies under operating conditions before committing capital to them,” said Layth Dwairi, CEO and Co‑Founder of Tathmeer Agri Tech. He added that “controlled‑environment systems, vertical farming, and AI‑enabled monitoring would be tested at the center, with successful technologies potentially connected to financing through Tathmeer’s SCA‑approved platform and buyers through FarmBridge.”

What the centre will offer

• Physical infrastructure on a dedicated SPARK plot to demonstrate and validate agri‑tech solutions.
• Technology mix including vertical farming, hydroponics, automation, IoT and AI monitoring systems.
• Integration of Tathmeer’s FarmBridge digital platform to connect farmers, technology providers, investors and markets.
• Applied R&D pilots, farmer training, technology selection support and startup development pathways.
• Certification, field learning and skills‑development programmes for farmers, agronomists and entrepreneurs.

Tathmeer is the UAE’s first Securities and Commodities Authority (SCA)‑approved and Sharia‑compliant AgriTech crowdfunding platform and ecosystem, and FarmBridge is central to the centre’s operating model. The combined digital and physical Agri‑Ecosystem is designed to answer three commercial questions for farmers: what to grow, how to grow it, and where to sell it, while enabling technology providers to demonstrate performance and establish commercial viability.

The company has also signed a partnership with Elevate Farms, a vertical farming technology firm with operations and presence in Canada, the United States and Switzerland, to provide access to vertical farming technologies for demonstration, validation and potential deployment across the UAE and the wider region.

Beyond technology demonstration, the centre will facilitate connections to capital through Tathmeer’s SCA‑approved crowdfunding platform and help route successful deployments to buyers via FarmBridge. Planned programming includes training and capacity building for farmers, agronomists, entrepreneurs and SMEs, as well as R&D pilots to refine solutions for local climatic and resource conditions.

Looking ahead, Tathmeer is expected to participate in the Agriculture Innovation Zone at Sharjah Next‑Sustainability, offering further opportunities for technology demonstrations and workshops as part of a broader push to adapt controlled‑environment farming, automation and AI to challenges such as water scarcity and limited arable land in the region.