RIYADH: Farmers in Saudi Arabia attained SR1.5 billion ($400 million) worth of funding after the Kingdom’s Agricultural Development Fund signed off a tranche of development loans. According to a statement made on Tuesday, the fund approved the payouts for small farmers involved in greenhouse vegetable production, poultry breeding and fish and shrimp farming. The statement added that refrigeration warehouses, dates manufacturing and marketing centers also received financial support. The approval of these loans underlines the fund’s objective to boost its developmental and financing role for agricultural activity. It is also in alignment with the policies of the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture and the Kingdom’s food security strategy of supporting the farming sector and boosting the supply chain. In the first three months of this year, the fund signed off on development and investment loans worth more than SR2.3 billion, compared to the SR861 million handed out in the same period of 2022. It resulted in a surge of 167 percent year over year in the first three months of 2023, according to a statement made in March. Those receiving loans ranged from small farmers and breeders to large poultry projects in Hail and Asir and the governorates of Shaqra, Al-Aflaj and Tathleeth. Nairiyah, Rabigh, Al-Ghat and Al-Olaya also benefited from the loans. There was also loan disbursal for greenhouse projects in Makkah and Al-Muzahimiyah, breeding and producing fish in inland waters of Al-Dawadmi and marketing agricultural products in Khamis Mushayt. The fund doled out loans worth SR4.2 billion in 2022.