Ennis STATE MINISTER for Agriculture, Errol Ennis, says the Ministry was promoting the concept of group farming, to allow producers to benefit from economies of scale.
As part of the initiative, the mother/satellite farming model is being advanced, in addition to providing opportunities for practical training and accessing of inputs, to ensure consistency of delivery in the supply chain.
The State Minister, who was making his contribution to the 2003/04 Sectoral Debate in the House last week, said the initiative was expected to go a far way in halting the decline in subsistence farming, while maintaining sustainable levels of growth, through continued income generation.
He said the strategy was actively encouraging partnerships between large and small farm operators, as part of an innovative extension thrust, given that the Rural Agricultural Development Authority's (RADA) resources could not be sufficiently strengthened, to allow for the kind of one-on-one service, which was needed in the sector.
INITIATIVE
The new initiative, which highlights technology driven research as one of the critical imperatives of a revitalised and competitive agricultural economy, will be boosted by the Ministry's recent $21.9 million upgrade of its research stations, to provide meaningful support to farmers.
On another matter, Mr. Ennis told the House that the Ministry was adopting a holistic approach to the development of rural agriculture by integrating all the agencies that were concerned with community development.
As part of the measure, it is proposed that authority be vested in the Parish Councils to co-ordinate the efforts of all the related agencies, including RADA, the Social Development Commission (SDC) and the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS), working with non-governmental groups.
Mr. Ennis said the process would employ a "bottom-up approach", to ensure the widest possible community participation at the decision-making level and to address the issues of infrastructural development, training, employment creation, land distribution, extension services, access to domestic and irrigation water, housing and other social amenities.
DELIVER
He pointed out that no single institution could realistically deliver all the necessary services, and that stakeholders must commit themselves to an integrated approach to the development of agriculture.
The government must commit itself to that approach and to provide adequate funding for the necessary support systems, the State Minister said, noting that other stakeholders must arrive at a firm consensus that they will work with each other and with the government to reposition agriculture, so as to transform it into the productive growth engine it has the potential to be.
The State Minister said that the Ministry was collaborating with the Jamaica Exporters Association (JEA) and a Caribbean funding agency, to produce manuals for the sector. He explained that the creation of manuals to guide crop production, have become the norm in developed countries.
