Agro National Corporation Limited (AgroNat) has completed the construction of four greenhouses and irrigation networks in Nolhivaram in Haa Dhaalu Atoll under the Zakat Nafaa programme.
Nolhivaram is the first island to start the Zakat Nafaa programme. A total of four families on the island are currently receiving assistance to farm under the programme. As such, four greenhouses are built on 5,000sqm of land. The greenhouses are 16ft by 50ft with fertigation systems. The rest of the land has been equipped with a modern irrigation system with wells and pumps. Therefore, a large part of the greenhouse will be semiautomatically irrigated, according to AgroNat.
Under the project, farmers have been provided with training and all the necessary facilities such as fertilisers through AgroNat. Information on fertigation systems and agricultural technical assistance was also given to the farmers. The greenhouses are expected to grow produce for the market within the next six months. All the produce grown by the farmers will be purchased from AgroNat for one year. Farmers will also have the opportunity to sell their produce through the company's contract farming programme after one year.
The Zakat Nafaa programme is a joint venture between the Ministry of Islamic Affairs and the Ministry of Economic Development. It is the largest such programme to commence with the aim of ending poverty in the Maldives. The programme is aimed at the 7,763 individuals who were registered as poor in 2021. The programme provides opportunities for underprivileged individuals to support themselves, thereby eliminating the need for the register of the poor and needy.