Last Updated on October 17, 2024, 2:20 PM AST by Anthony Morris
Basseterre, St Kitts: The Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources hosted a Plant Distribution Ceremony and distributed thousands of banana and plantain suckers to local farmers and backyard gardeners in St Kitts.
The ceremony was held as a part of the World Food Day activities and was held on Wednesday, October 16, 2024 at the Royal Basseterre Valley National Park.
The Ministry of Agriculture hosted this significant plantation drive in the aim of reducing the Federation’s high importation of food.
Significantly, in total, approximately 13,000 banana suckers and between 12,000 to 15,000 plantain suckers were distributed during the highly successful drive.
Ian Chapman, the Head of the Crops Programme within the Ministry of Agriculture, stated that this crop distribution drive will ultimately play a significant role in boosting local food production and reducing the country’s dependency on imported produce.
He also noted this initiative was led by the 25 by 25 programme as the ministry continues its intervention to help reduce the food import bill. “When we look at the statistics, banana and plantains are two commodities we see of high imports,” Mr. Chapman mentioned.
Notably, the Plant Distribution Drive held on Wednesday was the second distribution drive for banana and plantain suckers in this year. Earlier in July, the agriculture ministry distributed around 26,000 suckers to farmers across the island of St Kitts.
In addition to this, for the culmination of the World Food Day Activities, the agriculture minister Samal Duggins has shared the details of the much anticipated Fish Fry and Seafood Competition which will be held at the Old Road Fisheries Complex tomorrow, October 18, 2024.
“Come for the food, stay for the fun,” noted Minister Duggins.
Anthony Morris covers stories related to politics and regional developments. His in-depth reporting about governance and reforms makes him stand out in regional journalism, with a deep analysis of political trends and their impact on Caribbean communities.
