ADIO and Bayer sign MoU to advance Abu Dhabi life‑sciences and agri‑food innovation
The Abu Dhabi Investment Office and Bayer have agreed a strategic framework to explore collaboration across healthcare, food security and innovation, supporting Abu Dhabi’s HELM and AGWA clusters.
Strategic partnership to tap scientific expertise and local innovation
Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) and Bayer have signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding to investigate collaborative projects across life sciences, healthcare and agri‑food innovation. The agreement was formalised on 12 September 2026 during the state visit of President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to Germany.
The MoU was signed on behalf of ADIO by Mohammad Ali Al Kamali, Chief Trade and Industry Officer, and on behalf of Bayer by Matthias Berninger, Executive Vice President, Head of Public Affairs, Sustainability and Safety. The ceremony was witnessed by Mohammad Abdulrahman Alhawi, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Investment, and Hamad Sayah Al Mazrouei, Undersecretary of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development.
The agreement establishes a framework to identify opportunities that combine Bayer’s global scientific capabilities with Abu Dhabi’s rapidly developing innovation ecosystem. Areas of potential collaboration cited by the parties include agriculture and food security, healthcare innovation including access to advanced therapies, philanthropic initiatives for health and food security, and engagement with local research institutions, accelerators and technology programmes.
Notably, the partnership contemplates potential field trials to assess crop performance in desert and arid conditions, reflecting Abu Dhabi’s focus on adapting agronomy to local environments. Such trials would contribute to the emirate’s broader ambitions to strengthen national food security while exploring sustainable approaches to water and land use.
The MoU is presented as supportive of ADIO’s Health, Endurance, Longevity and Medicine (HELM) cluster and its AgriFood Growth and Water Abundance (AGWA) cluster. ADIO and Bayer said the collaboration aims to bolster knowledge exchange and to build connections among stakeholders that could lead to future initiatives enhancing the resilience and sustainability of health and food systems.
ADIO has been positioning Abu Dhabi as a global hub for advanced life‑sciences and healthcare innovation; the agreement with Bayer signals an intent to draw on multinational research strengths and local investment to accelerate that ambition. For Bayer, the arrangement opens opportunities to test and adapt solutions in challenging climates and to work within a growing innovation ecosystem supported by ADIO and other Abu Dhabi institutions.
Both parties described the MoU as a non‑binding framework to explore projects of mutual interest, with next steps expected to focus on detailed scoping, stakeholder engagement and the identification of pilot activities aligned with Abu Dhabi’s strategic clusters.
Source: WAM