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By Kevon Browne
ST. KITTS AND NEVIS (WINN) — Despite the severe impact of Hurricane Beryl, Guyana’s President, His Excellency Mohammed Irfaan Ali, remains hopeful of reducing the Caribbean’s high food import bills.
President Ali, who is the Head of Government responsible for agriculture and food security in the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), expressed his confidence during a press conference at the 47th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community.
Speaking in St. George’s, Grenada, President Ali stressed that Hurricane Beryl had caused huge damage to the agricultural sector in CARICOM member States.
“With Hurricane Beryl, much of the progress we had made towards achieving our 25 goals and programmes by 2025 was at risk. Of course, we are also aware that the season has only just begun and the challenges we face will be enormous. We were and are on track to meet the targets we set: deploying technology, leveraging innovation, increasing the participation of youth and women in agricultural production and food systems, expanding production itself and reducing imports, all of which show that we have successfully met the challenge of reducing our food import bill. In fact, before Hurricane Beryl, our food import bill had decreased by 12%, or more than $500 million. We are seeing an increase in cultivated areas and production in almost every member country.”
Despite these setbacks, President Ali stressed his commitment to reducing food import bills and expanding regional agricultural production. “We will succeed in reducing food import bills and expanding production,” he said.
“We are confident that the investments that are being made and the dedication and policy development of leaders across the region, despite the challenges that we face, we will succeed in reducing our food import bill and expanding production, especially now focusing on high-yielding, short-rotation crops, high-value short-rotation crops, especially for tourism, which will help our agribusinesses generate more revenue and be more sustainable. So that’s important.”
Preliminary estimates put the damage from the hurricane at about $150 million, but further assessment is needed.
“According to preliminary assessments, the damage caused to the industry by Beryl is more than $150 million, and this is only a preliminary assessment. We have not even calculated the cost of land degradation, because in Grenada, for example, we visited some areas where it is clear that there is severe land degradation. So we continue to call on all regional and international organizations to support the region and help us rebuild and recover from these losses.”
President Ali reported to the Heads of Government Meeting on significant progress towards achieving regional food and nutrition security. The April 2024 CARICOM/WFP Livelihoods Survey showed a 17 percent reduction in regional food insecurity.
The meeting communiqué detailed that by the first quarter of 2024, CARICOM member States had achieved 30% of their target, with actual imports falling by 12%, equivalent to a reduction of US$250 million. The communiqué also noted the development of a regional youth agricultural strategy and the launch of the Regional Economic Agriculture Insurance Program (REAP) on July 26, 2024, as significant progress in building resilience and increasing production.
“The Heads of Government urged regional financial institutions to provide special support packages to agricultural stakeholders and businesses to promote the recovery and revitalization of the sector. They also agreed to adopt the Regional Resilient Farm-Shadehouse Model, aimed at improving the economic situation of rural family farms and adapted to the specific circumstances of specific Member States,” the communique stated.
CARICOM, Canada discuss capacity to respond to natural disasters
At a working breakfast during the 47th Ordinary Session, CARICOM Heads of Government and Canada’s Minister of International Development, Ahmed Hussen, discussed regional resilience to natural disasters and strategies to improve access to finance.
The outgoing CARICOM Chair, Guyana’s President Dr. Irfaan Ali, briefed the media on the collaboration and thanked Minister Hussen for his participation. Discussions focused on sustainable housing development to build resilience to hurricanes, and rebuilding the agriculture sector, which suffered more than $150 million in damages as a result of Cyclone Beryl.
President Ali told reporters that the Heads of State and Minister Hussen discussed how Canada could accelerate plans and initiatives in the region and provide assistance in a shorter time frame following Hurricane Beryl, focusing on housing, digitalization, upskilling and investments in economic transformation with an emphasis on resilience and sustainability, including rebuilding our housing stock.
The discussion highlighted the determination to strengthen the resilience and sustainability of the Caribbean region in the face of increasing natural disasters.
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