CARDI’s Representative for Barbados, Ansari Hosein, conducting the stakeholders meeting.
IT is being proposed that the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) include in its five-year strategic plan, programmes with a view to the establishment of a regional seed bank.
Stakeholders of the agricultural sector are also suggesting that CARDI focuses on disaster and risk mitigation strategies; improving regional trade of agricultural produce; ensuring quality of regional produce; and development of agricultural equipment using local skills and expertise.
These recommendations were made yesterday during a meeting of key stakeholders who represented the agricultural community in Barbados.
The objective of the meeting which was held at the Animal Nutrition Unit, Pine East West Boulevard, was to obtain comments and receive feedback on the CARDI’s five-year Strategic Plan 2018-2022 draft document.
The stakeholder also reiterated their support for CARDI and their willingness to partner with the Institute to implement the programmes proposed particularly in the areas of capacity building through internships for youths interested in agriculture, policy development and advocacy, strengthening and exploiting linkages between tourism and agricultural sectors.
At the meeting, CARDI Representative for Barbados, Ansari Hosein emphasised that it is important for stakeholders to be afforded the opportunity to contribute to the development of the plan, since persons in the Member of States are essentially owners, clients and partners.
“Through this consultative process, the final version of the document should also be in synergy with the programmes of its member countries and relevant to the respective national vision for Agriculture. This is in keeping with our fundamental principle of working together.
“We all have the same aim which is to increase farmer’s income, productivity and profits, improve livelihoods and industry development which will also lead to a reduction in the food import bill and provide some measure of food and nutrition security to the people of the Region,” Hosein said.
CARDI was established in 1974 to serve the agricultural research and development needs of the Member States of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and is well positioned to enhance the socio-economic well-being of the Caribbean people through research for development that improves the competitiveness and sustainability of regional agriculture.
The feedback received yesterday will be considered as the Institute prepares the final document for submission to its Board of Directors in September 2017 and subsequently, its Board of Governors. (AH)