St. George’s, January 28, 2009 (GIS) – Agriculture Minister Hon. Denis has said that government has embarked on a plan to build “critical capacities’’ in the agricultural sector in Grenada.
The plan, which would also help lower the unemployment rate in the country, as well address incidences of food-related chronic non-communicable diseases, puts youth at the centre of the initiative, Hon. Lett said.
The Minister made the comments in an address to a workshop in St. George’s of the Caribbean Farmers’ Network (CaFAN). More than 40 young business farmers and agro-business leaders from 12 Caribbean countries, including Grenada, attended the workshop which was jointly organised by the Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Cooperation of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group and the European Union; the Caribbean Development Bank; the United Nations Development Programme; and the Marketing and National Importing Board of Grenada.
Minister Lett lamented that while consumers’ behavior patterns are changing, there are no corresponding changes in our agricultural production methodologies.
He said government plans for a “smooth transformation’’ and development of the agricultural sector in Grenada involve utilizing 70 young people who have been participating in a programme as Extension Trainee Agricultural Officers.
The featured address at the “Youth in Agriculture’’ workshop was delivered by Hon. Tillman Thomas, Prime Minister of Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique.
The Prime Minister welcomed the visiting workshop participants, and praised CaFAN’s drive for agriculture development among youth in the Caribbean region.
Another workshop speaker was Hon. Patrick Simmons, Minister for Youth Empowerment and Sports, who told the youth that they are the future of agriculture. He urged them to embrace the opportunity to learn how their nations and their region can feed its people in the coming years.
Hon. Simmons related the success of an agricultural project that forms part of his ministry’s Youth Education and Training Programme. Under the General Agriculture Programme at the Mirabeau Farm School, there are now over 50 young people and the numbers are growing, Ministers Simmons said.
He said the programme will enhance participants’ knowledge of agriculture theory. It also places great emphasis on teaching them practical skills needed to become functioning professionals in the field of agriculture, the Minister added.
Chief Coordinator of CaFAN, Jethro Green, who spoke on behalf of Caribbean Farmers’ Network, said the organisation is counting on a vibrant leadership of youth in agriculture.
They are required for sustainable development of agriculture in the region, for the repositioning of agriculture economics, and for making agriculture a viable business, Mr. Green said.
