The Ministry of Municipality, in cooperation with the Ministry of Health, has recently launched the "supportive activities initiative", which allows farm owners to utilise surplus production during peak season months by converting it into canned products to be sold in markets, adding value to their products and diversifying their sources of income.
Speaking to local Arabic daily Arrayah, Adel al-Yafei, Assistant Director of the Agricultural Affairs Department at the Ministry of Municipality pointed out that farm owners can benefit from this initiative by submitting an application to obtain a license from the department.
Further, he said that the Ministry provides a wide range of agricultural machinery and equipment to farm owners through the agricultural mechanization services, where such services could be accessed within short time not exceeding five days from the date of submitting the related request. .
He stressed the keenness of the Ministry on maintaining the highest quality for the agriculture production supplies. He noted that when conducting tenders for supplying production inputs, seeds and fertilizers are selected according to high technical specifications and standards approved by the concerned specialized committees. These committees set the required standards for various inputs, ensuring they are distributed to farm owners based on their needs and agricultural plans. He noted that agricultural plans have been received from more than 500 farms across the country, representing the most significant producers of green crops.
Accordingly, significant quantities of production inputs (seeds, fertilizers, pesticides) were provided to the local farmers. During the 2023/2024 season, around 37,000 seed packets were distributed, representing a 20% increase compared to the previous season. Besides, 78,375 bags of chemical fertilizers were distributed, an increase of over 400%, alongside 62,544 pesticide containers, also 400% increase compared to the previous season. Further, 600,000 plastic packing boxes (with capacities of 6 kg and 3 kg) were supplied, in addition to around 200,000 bags of organic fertilizers.
In the meantime, he said that the number of registered farms in the country has amounted to 1,290, with 670 of them actively marketing their produce. Through the various related initiatives launched, farm owners are being encouraged, and a gradual increase in the number of farms has been observed from one season to the other.
To improve the marketing capabilities of farm owners, the Ministry of Municipality, in partnership with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is working to improve the efficiency of the previously launched marketing initiatives, which include the Local Product Yards Initiative, Qatar Farms Initiative, Premium Product Initiative, and Mahaseel Initiative, which have played a significant role in marketing considerable quantities of local vegetable production, exceeding 60% of their overall production.
Adel al-Yafei
