A center dedicated to breeding beneficial insects that naturally attack the coconut hispid beetle has been opened today.

The "Palm Pest Biological Control Parasitoid Rearing Center," established in HDh. Hanimaadhoo, was inaugurated by Agriculture Minister Ahmed Shiyam and the Ambassador of China to the Maldives, Kong Xianhua.

The Agriculture Ministry stated that the purpose of the center is to identify diseases affecting coconut palms and damaging pests in the Maldives, and to establish a system to sustainably control such diseases.

Among these efforts, controlling diseases using environmentally friendly methods involves breeding beneficial insects that attack the pest and releasing them into infected areas. The ministry also noted that the center will have the capacity to breed 100,000 parasitoids per day specifically for this work.

The coconut hispid beetle was first discovered in the Maldives at Sun Island Resort in 1999. Once it came to the Ministry's attention, numerous efforts were undertaken to prevent the spread of the pest.

At the request of the Maldives, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) launched a project titled "Integrated Pest Management of Coconut Hispid Beetle" in September 2003 to minimize the damage caused by the pest. Under this initiative, parasitoid breeding and release into affected areas began.

The ministry stated that challenges still remain in adequately controlling palm diseases such as the pest and spiraling whitefly. Therefore, the Ministry noted that this newly initiated work will pave the way to sustainably control and eliminate such diseases.

The center was established under the "Maldives Coconut Tree Pest Control Assistance Project" formed between the Maldives and China. The agreement to construct the center under this project was signed on July 14, 2025.