Farmers in St Vincent and the Grenadines are receiving additional support to improve productivity and build resilience through the ADOPT Caribbean – Soil Health for Climate-Resilient Agriculture Project.
According to an IICA press release, the IICA Delegation in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Transformation, handed over agricultural kits to beneficiary farmers Hazzard Joseph and Vito Connell at the IICA office. The ceremony came two months after the regional project officially ended.
The project operated in Guyana, Jamaica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, using technical training, field demonstrations and partnerships to strengthen knowledge of soil health, agronomy, irrigation management and other climate-smart practices. In Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Joseph and Connell worked with CARDI to test soil-health techniques, including compost and organic mulch.
Joseph said the experience improved her farming practices.
“I can say that I am a better farmer today than I was when the project started. I am grateful for the equipment and the other items. I am willing and will continue doing farming so that I can help with the food security of my country, so that we can make things better for all farmers,” she remarked.
Connell said the project changed his perspective on agriculture.
“I am grateful to be part of this project. It has changed my perspective of agriculture. Agriculture is very expensive, we cannot be spending money and not getting any returns, we have to chart the path for those behind, for productivity, food security and economic efficiency,” he said.
The kits include fungicides, insecticides, seeds, rain gauges, tensiometers, pH meters, water meters, hand lenses, sticky traps, thermometers, tarpaulins and other supplies. A gasoline-powered chaff cutter/silage machine was also provided.
IICA Representative Gregg Rawlins said the support is part of an integrated approach covering land preparation, soil restoration, water management, crop monitoring, pest and disease management, forage management and crop production.
Chief Agricultural Officer (Ag.) Marcus Richards described the handover as an investment in farmers’ capacity, productivity and resilience.
The initiative was funded by the Government of New Zealand through its Climate Smart Agriculture Initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean (NZCSA-LAC), as part of its contribution to the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA), and administered through the Ag Emissions Centre.
