Assistance coming for farmers in parishes affected by reduced rainfall

Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, Audley Shaw, says the Government is committed to providing assistance to farmers in the parishes most affected by a reduction in rainfall.

The parishes are St Thomas, St Mary, Portland, St Elizabeth,  Manchester, Clarendon and Kingston and St Andrew. 

In remarks delivered on his behalf by Chief Technical Director in the Ministry, Courtney Cole, at the 23rd staging of Agrofest, Shaw assured that a data collection process is being undertaken by field officers at the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA).

He said that this will enable the proper provision of assistance to the impacted farmers in short order.

Hosted by the Kingston and St. Andrew Association of Branch Societies of the Jamaica Agricultural Society, Agrofest was held at the Ministry’s playfield located at the Hope Gardens on May 25.

Meanwhile, Shaw further assured farmers that the Ministry continues to take steps to alleviate the impact of climate change on the agriculture sector.

“Among the strategies that we have been encouraging farmers to employ are more efficient use of water and developing and applying more climate-smart land husbandry technology. This is important as we strive towards building our nation’s resilience and capacity to protect livelihoods and food security,” he said.

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