A new effort to systematically document the country’s agricultural landscape signals a shift towards more data-driven policymaking in a sector that has long operated with limited formal visibility.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Welfare has announced plans to carry out the Maldives’ first nationwide agricultural data collection, in collaboration with the Maldives Bureau of Statistics and the Food and Agriculture Organisation. The exercise is expected to begin this year.
According to the ministry, more than 7,000 individuals are currently engaged in agriculture across the country, with women accounting for over half of the workforce. The data collection aims to build a clearer picture of this segment, including those who are not formally registered.
Officials stated that the initiative will gather detailed information on crop varieties, farming practices, and the operational challenges faced by farmers. It will also seek to identify resource gaps and support needs within the sector, areas that have often been difficult to quantify due to the absence of structured data.
The ministry has confirmed that the questionnaire for the exercise has already been developed and pretested, with preparations underway to roll out a dedicated digital application to support both data collection and management.
The move reflects a broader attempt to strengthen agricultural planning and sustainability in the Maldives, where domestic production remains limited and heavily influenced by geographic constraints. By establishing a more reliable data foundation, policymakers are likely to gain greater capacity to design targeted interventions, improve resource allocation, and monitor sector performance over time.
