Agriculture ministry to spearhead cross-sector partnerships to drive food production
Several cross-sector partnerships, aimed at driving food production and supporting economic growth, will be spearheaded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries this year.
“Agriculture and Fisheries will be the backbone of sustainable growth and development in our country. This year, we are going to be doing exciting projects,” said portfolio Minister Pearnel Charles Jr.
He was speaking during the recent handover of six rubber-wheel farm tractors to the Rural Agricultural Development Authority at the Agro-Investment Corporation in Kingston.
Among the initiatives is a collaboration with the Ministry of National Security to “utilise the lands that they have at correctional centres… working with them to improve production while we also advance rehabilitation,” Charles Jr said.
In addition, he noted that the ministry will be working with the churches to identify young vulnerable persons “and putting them on the church land, giving them technical support and technical guidance, getting them off the street, and putting them [to work the land].”
He said there will also be collaboration with companies that “understand the importance of food security”.
“We need you. We need your help and we need your support and your financial resources to see how we can push investment into agriculture,” he said.
“You have land, we have the expertise. Together, we can double production in Jamaica, expand the processing opportunity, expand the range of products along the value chain, and see every single Jamaican boy and girl off to school with a healthy meal – growing smart, eating smart and living smart,” Charles Jr added.
He also made an appeal to Jamaicans, and in particular young people, to get involved in agriculture.
“If you’re at home and you don’t know what to do, get into this sector. Reach out to the College of Agriculture, Science and Education; reach out to the other institutions; call us at the ministry… because if you understand and know agriculture, and can feed yourself, your family will never starve,” Charles Jr pointed out.
