RIYADH – Royal approval has been given for a SR1.766 billion program for combating red weevils that pose a mortal threat to date palms, according to Minister of Agriculture Abdulrahman Abdulmuhsin Al-Fadhli.
The money will be spent over a period of five years, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday, quoting the minister.
Al-Fadhli said the approval confirms the Saudi government's support for the agricultural sector, one of the pillars of the national economy.
Al-Fadhli said the program aims at protecting date farmers and limiting the economic damage resulting from the spread of the deadly pest.
The minister called on farmers, the private sector and related institutions to carry out the program's goals and protect the country's agricultural resources.
The red palm weevil (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) is a species of beetle with an elongated snout. Weevil larvae typically grow inside seeds, stems or other plant parts. They can create meter deep holes in the trunk of palm trees, thereby weakening and eventually killing the host tree.
The adult beetles are between two and five centimeters long and are usually a rusty red color, but many color variants exist and have often been misidentified as different species.
