State Trading Organisation (STO) has established the STO Agricentre to buy agricultural products from Maldivian farmers.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the Agricentre, Managing Director of STO Hussain Amr Mohamed said farmers are not receiving the full benefit from the sale of their products, since farmers have no control over the price of their products, and they do not profit when their products are sold at high prices in the market. Amr said the STO Agricentre aims to give farmers a fair income for their work and the centre will weigh the products sent in by farmers and provide them with the details of the transactions via a special online portal, before depositing the payments to the bank accounts of the farmers. He said the Agricentre has publicised the lowest price at which it will buy specific products, which will ensure farmers receive a fair price, and market prices remain stable. He added the Agricentre has made agreements to wholesale the products to resorts.
STO has stated more than 200 farmers are currently registered at the Agricentre. Registered farmers are required to submit a list of their products before sending them to the Agricentre.
STO Agricentre is located at the building that previously housed the STO Construction Materials Wholesale Store.