| Abstract: | The fisheries and agriculture sectors play
a vital role in the Republic of Maldives for
various reasons.
On one hand, statistics show that on
average fish consumption contributes to
nearly 71% of the animal-source protein
intake of the population’s diet, that is the
highest percent in the world (Bennett and
al., 2018). This ranks the Republic of
Maldives as the world first fish-dependent
country.
On another hand, it appears that the
steadily growth of the population, along
with the continuous influx of tourists,
attract a high demand for fish and
agricultural products (FAO, 2012). In this
regard, statistics show that the current
population rose to 533,942 in 2019 with an
expected growth rate of 23% for the next
decade. Meanwhile, the tourism sector
attracted 1,484,274 visitors in 2017,
generating nearly 20% of the Maldives’
GDP at current prices, which is the
highest share of all sectors in the country
(NBS, 2018).
Despite this growing internal demand for
fish and agricultural products, it is worth
noticing that the primary sector’s own
share of the GDP only reached 5.6% in
2017 (NBS, 2018). Furthermore, national
records indicate that less than 10% of the
national food requirement is met
through domestic production and the
country still remains 100% dependent on
imports for staple food items such as
flour, rice and sugar (FAO, 2012).
In view of such context, it has become
crucial to better assess the challenges and
opportunities pertaining to the fisheries
and agriculture sectors in order to
develop sound policies that will effectively trigger greater benefits for all,
namely fishers, farmers, consumers, and
other industry stakeholders. (FAO, 2012).
Hence, this document endeavors to
present Maldives’ first national policy
framework for the fisheries and
agricultural sectors.
The first section exposes the background
context, rationale, applicability, and
scope of the policy framework. The
second section presents the fundamental
components of the policy, that is the
mission, vision, values, guiding principles,
focus areas and pillars. Then, the third
section details the policy statements that
shall lead the sustainable development of
the Maldives’ fisheries and agricultural
sectors in the next ten years. Sections 4
and 5 focus on the institutional, legal and
regulatory framework whereas section 6
discusses the implementation process.
Lastly, section 7 addresses key factors to
consider in order to ensure proper
monitoring and evaluation of the policy
enactment.
As it stands, the fisheries and agriculture
sectors are likely to attract greater
national attention in the upcoming years.
This is because both sectors have a unique
potential to alleviate poverty through
greater economic empowerment, as well
as to improve food security, the
nutritional state and the overall health
status of the population while
significantly contributing to sustainable
environmental management.
Therefore, it is hoped that this first
national fisheries and agricultural policy
framework will lead both sectors to
deliver their promises of a better future
for the Maldivian people. |
