Government of Maldives Publishes Approved Pesticide Registry List

The Government of Maldives published a list of approved pesticide registries which contains more than 130 different types of licensed pesticides. The registry also provides useful information on the active ingredient and formulation of the pesticide along with their host plant and target pest. In addition to this, the World Health Organization’s Hazard Class and the Unites States EPA Toxicity Class are also listed in the information.

Following tourism and fisheries, the other major industry in the Maldives is agriculture, widely practised all across the country. With farmers cultivating many different crops in the Maldives, the use of pesticides has become increasingly common among crop growers. According to the Oxford dictionary, a pesticide is defined as any substance used for destroying insects or other organisms harmful to cultivated plants or to animals.

The findings of the research carried out by the Ministry of Environment, Climate Change & Technology showed that 14 various pesticides were imported into the Maldives in 2021 that were classified by the ‘International Agency for Research in Cancer’ as carcinogens. Carcinogens are substances that are capable of causing cancer in living tissue. The findings also showed that extensive amounts of chemicals are being imported into the Maldives for agricultural and construction purposes, which include substances that are considered environmental hazards.

Hence the Approved Agricultural Pesticide Registry was formulated which provides valuable information on different types of pesticides and their uses. Some of the pesticides featured in the registry include insecticides, herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, and micro biocides as well as bird repellents and insect growth regulators. Furthermore, safe concentration limits are also mentioned in the registry for farmers.