By: Precious Mills
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (Friday 22nd October 2021) — Federal Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Marine Resources Alexis Jeffers declared “We need agriculture now more than ever” during an episode of ‘Leadership Matters’ on ZIZ on Tuesday 19th October 2021. Reflecting on World Food Day’s theme “Our actions are our future: Better production, better nutrition, a better environment, and a better life,” Minister Jeffers said: “At this point in our history, and at this point in the development of agriculture, urgent questions demand innovative ways of thinking, organizing, problem solving and action. To ensure healthy and nutritious foods for all in a post-COVID world of increasing threats such as pests and diseases, conflicts and climate change, we have to disrupt the status quo and be proactive about the future we want to create.”
“We cannot depend solely on importation of goods that we can certainly produce here within the Federation. Agriculture still remains an important factor in the development of our nation and the key to creating equitable and sustainable growth for our people,” he continued. He called for including young men and women and children at the primary and high school level in agricultural education, and for all government ministries, farmers and farmers’ organizations, the private sector, the media and civil society to have all hands on deck to ensure the sector’s transformation and growth strategy can work.