**Acknowledgements**

We would like to express our sincere gratitude and appreciation to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Secretariat for funding this research conducted in the framework of the "*Development of sustainable date palm production systems in the GCC countries of the Arabian Peninsula*" project.

We are very grateful to the Ministries of Agriculture, Agricultural Authorities, and Agricultural Research Institutions and Universities in the GCC countries of the Arabian Peninsula for their continuous support and great collaboration in the implementation of the project activities.

Special thanks go to the all stakeholders (date palm growers, consumers, wholesale retailers, decision makers, date palm processors, date palm transporters, date palm importers for production inputs, researchers and extension staff) in KSA, Oman, and Kuwait for their great collaboration during the data collection process.
