AS the Caribbean moves towards increasing its food security, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) is promoting “Protected agriculture.”According to CDB President, Dr. William Warren Smith, speaking during an interview on the National Communications Network (NCN) Monday, the regional bank views agriculture as vital to the prosperity of the Region. Dr. Smith was joined by Guyana’s Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh who is also Chairman of the bank’s board of governors.
“In the CDB, we like to talk about agriculture in the context of rural development, in other words, we feel especially in countries like Guyana, the larger countries of the Caribbean, large segments of our populations live in the rural area; so apart from ensuring that you don’t spend a chunk of your foreign exchange importing food, the fact that you can develop a modern agriculture sector in the rural areas, what you are also doing is contributing to the wealth and development of people who live in those rural areas so that it is part and parcel of the development puzzle.”
The CDB president noted that over the years, as the focus on agriculture has reduced in many countries, with some segueing into tourism and importing food to fill their needs, their local agricultural sectors have been declining.
The CDB, he said, has recognised that many youths who comprise the bulk of the Region’s populations, are no longer interested in back breaking labour which characterised the industry previously. “They want to utilise that skill that they’re learning in school with their science courses and what have you, to do a more modern agriculture.”
The move towards what Dr. Smith described as “Protected Agriculture”, is now being focused on by the CDB. This entails the use of green houses to grow specific crops which have a good domestic market and the possibility of being linked to the tourist industry with its emphasis on quality.
The CDB is also focusing on irrigation, and in countries such as Jamaica, the bank’s president said that this move has helped to increase productivity in agriculture.
Guyana is also pushing to enhance the regional capacity for food security through agriculture; and according to Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh, large scale investments such as the Santa Fe mega farm in Region 9 will result in these goals being achieved through economies of scale.
Guyana, Minister Singh added, is seeking to ensure regional standards for food quality and easier transportation and accessibility to Caribbean markets. All of these efforts will go to reducing the Region’s dependability on food imports from beyond the Region.
The Caribbean Region currently imports billions of US dollars in food, and Guyana, via the Jagdeo Initiative, is seeking to have regional states become more food secure through increased and sustained agricultural productivity.

(GINA)