53 Individuals Complete Basic Mariculture Course

The Ministry of Fisheries has stated that a total of 53 individuals have completed the basic mariculture course conducted under the "Marine Hatchery Skills Development Programme", which was initiated with the assistance of the Transforming Fisheries Sector Management in South-West Indian Ocean Region and Maldives Project (TRANSFORM).

According to the information released by the Ministry to mark the second anniversary of the current government, four rounds of the basic mariculture course have been conducted over the past two years. The Ministry stated that 53 people, including female participants from various parts of the Maldives, were trained in these four rounds. These courses were held in K. Maniyafushi.

The course is conducted with the aim of producing Maldivian technicians needed to introduce and develop a mariculture industry in the Maldives. It provided information on aquaculture systems, live feed production, breeding of grouper, sea cucumber, Maldivian clownfish, and pearl oysters, identifying and preventing diseases in cultured species, and conducting mariculture activities with minimal environmental impact. In addition, participants were provided with practical experience in breeding grouper, sea cucumber, and clownfish.

The Marine Hatchery Skills Development Programme is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Fisheries and Ocean Resources and the Maldives Marine Research Institute. It was included in President Dr. Mohamed Muizzu's "Hafuthaa 14" roadmap with the aim of developing mariculture to provide additional income and employment opportunities for people living in various parts of the Maldives, close to their islands, and to further expand and diversify economic activities in the country.

The Fisheries Ministry is undertaking numerous efforts to establish and develop a mariculture industry in the Maldives. These include a programme to sell sea cages and live juvenile groupers to interested parties. The arrangement to provide sea cages and live juvenile groupers to private individuals is intended to facilitate mariculture businesses by growing groupers.

Furthermore, as part of the efforts to establish mariculture as a distinct industry, four zones have been designated for mariculture development. To accelerate the growth of the mariculture industry, it has also been decided to provide numerous concessions to foreign investors operating in the mariculture zones.