''Govt. targeting to reduce food imports, increase productivity''

Economic Minister Fayyaz Ismail has stated that the government wished to drastically reduce imports into the country in the long run.

Speaking in a news conference last night, Minister Fayyaz said that the government had now identified 17 types of crops that can be cultivated in the country in order to reduce imports and the country’s dependency on imports for food supply.

“ These are crops that can be grown in the country, which can successfully reduce the number of imports. Our target is to increase our productivity by 50 percent in these types in the future and to keep on increasing the (productivity) figures.” said the Minister.

He also stated that 44 islands in the Maldives were now identified for the purposes which include islands that are currently involved in the agricultural industry.

“So, we will work with councils to form contracts with farmers. We will only purchase crops grown according to our standards and the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture regarding good agricultural practices. We will also provide training for the purposes.” said Minister Fayyaz.

When signing the MoU, a specific quota with a specific price will be provided to farmers, whose products will be supplied to resorts across the country.

The Minister stated that discussions to develop the agricultural industry had been underway for nearly six months now.

The Maldivian economy, which is heavily dependent on tourism, is suffering massively due to the ongoing situation with the Covid-19 pandemic. This had led the government to work towards diversifying the economy towards other sectors such as agriculture.