The Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Marine Resources, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), and Nevis’ Ministry of Agriculture, Lands, Housing, Co-operatives and Fisheries have partnered to launch the Strengthening Protected Agriculture to Improve People’s Livelihoods, Food and Nutrition Security project.
An opening ceremony on 10th June marked the start of the initiative and a 5-day workshop which is now underway at the Department of Agriculture’s LaGuerite site.
Lead Technical Officer, Plant Production and Protection for FAO, Melvin Medina Navarro, is the main facilitator of the workshop which is focused on ways to improve access to food supplies through increased access to agricultural inputs and resilient practices. It is also highlighting ways in which household income can be increased through new and restored livelihoods by developing strategies to improve food systems and reduce food losses and waste.
On the first day, FAO Focal Point and Liaison in the Ministry of Agriculture, St. Kitts, Tonisha Weeks, and FAO National Consultant, Keithley Amory, presented a summary of the work previously undertaken by the FAO production cultivation systems and the lessons learned through farm assessments.
FAO international consultant, Jervis Rowe, presented on the Introduction and Advantages to Protected Cultivation Systems for Vegetable Crop production discussing the many advantages. According to Rowe, “The efficiency in the use of land, water, nutrients, and sunlight and the efficient pest and disease control minimises the use of pesticides and increases crop quality and more and better quality sunlight for crops.”
Among the other topics discussed were Project-Log Frame, Outputs and activities, Cross Cuttings, Costs of production and business cases for Selected Vegetable Crops under Protected Cultivation in St. Kitts and Nevis.
Days three and four will comprise field visits to optimise greenhouses and structures to be rehabilitated across St. Kitts and Nevis.
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