Minister of state in the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Franklin Witter is looking forward to an increase in agricultural output given the “investment” he said the Government is making in the sector.

He was speaking at the Agro-Investment Corporation’s Market Linkage Networking Seminar last month at the Jamaica Conference Centre, which formed part of Farmers’ Month Activities, where he cited the commissioning of a solar water pump in Beacon and the Essex Valley Agricultural Development Project — both of which are geared toward bringing more water to farms in the breadbasket parish of St Elizabeth, where he is a Member of Parliament for the south-eastern constituency.

“As we boast improvement in agricultural production and productivity and output, it is very timely to create the linkages between farmers and those investing in agriculture,” he shared

He added that while the farmers have responded to the increased investment of Government in agricultural, it was equally important that “the market respond to the increase in production”. As such he said the Agro-Investment Corporation’s Market Linkage Networking Seminar and engagements of that kind will “create, improve and strengthen” the linkages between the various actors “across the value chain” of the sector.

The seminar was arranged with the aim of bringing together agro-processors, farmers and investors to share their business strategies with the aim of catalysing growth through networking, dialogue and creating linkages. Across the value chain various payers, including government agencies and departments under the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, shared information on meeting the requirements of exporting, ago-processing, and food safety.

According to Owen Scarlett, acting CEO of the Agro-Investment Corporation, the organisation will continue “to play our part by facilitating business and asset matching through one-on-one dialogue as well as collating, reviewing and disseminating a set of bankable projects that will interest investors”.

Highlighting the objectives of the Agro-Invest, the CEO said the organisation aims also to promote region-wide networks for expanding production and distribution; connecting regional and international agencies and officials involved in developing and financing agricultural projects; helping farmers to scale their business ideas and helping them to take their produce “from farm to fork” and driving market connection, linkages and investment.

“We firmly believe that a boost in agricultural investment will enhance our production and food security,” Scarlett stated.

“As an agency of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, we promote and facilitate investment by leveraging Government-owned land and property. The corporation is also mandated to mobilise funding opportunities and develop partnerships with public and private stakeholders,” he added.

On this note, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Pearnel Charles Jr pointed out that Agro-Invest’s mandate is critical to the development of Jamaica.

“The vision for [Agro-Invest] is to develop a stakeholder-centric, market-drive and technology-focused [sector] that will enable agriculture to become a cornerstone of Jamaica’s sustainable socio-economic development,” he further outlined.

In this regard, he said the work of the corporation is about bringing people together in partnership and through coordination to drive investment in agriculture — “connecting the dots” between farmers and buyers.

Charles Jr added that the linkages seminar was, therefore, commitment of both private and public sector players in advancing knowledge and driving funding. In fact, he noted that for the seminar to focus on linkages between players, it’s an acknowledgement that there are gaps and challenges in the sector.

“We look at the fragmented value chain and we see the need for improvement in terms of the coordination between our fames, the intermediaries and the buyers. That’s why we have programmes like ALEX, a software that is providing an opportunity for buyers to be connected to the hotel industry,” he said, adding that through the programme the agricultural sector earned $330 million last year.

ALEX is a joint initiative of the Tourism Enhancement Fund and the Rural Agricultural Development Authority. Since January 2023, farmers have so far earned over $100 million.

The minister added that the sector has grown by over 10 per cent between 2021 and 2022, with output totalling over 840,000 tonnes, bringing the sector to its seventh-consecutive quarter of growth.