ROADTOWN Tortola BVI, February 10th, 2012 -- His Excellency the Governor, Honourable Premier, Minister for Education and Culture, Minister for Health and Social Development, other Members of the House of Assembly, past legislators, senior government officials retired and present, senior citizens it is good to see all of you, students even better to see you here, ladies and gentlemen a pleasant good morning to all.
In 2003, I had the opportunity to attend a conference in Dhaka, Bangladesh and I was privileged to be a member of a panel that was discussing the question on the millennium goals of the United Nations.
In September 2000, leaders from 193 countries around the world signed the United Nations Millennium Declaration and committed the international community to fulfill eight goals; these are termed the Millennium Development Goals, by the year 2015. The first of these goals is the eradication of hunger and poverty.
The number of hungry people in the world remains unacceptably high despite recent gains that have pushed the figure below 1 billion. In the year 2010, it was estimated that the number of people suffering from chronic hunger was 925 million and the Food and Agriculture Organization recognize hunger as the single most important global issue of concern.
While the issue of chronic hunger may seem foreign to our islands, it is something that we certainly must keep at the forefront of our minds. In our country on any given day we can leave our homes and walk into the supermarket and select from a range of food items. My friends, this is a privilege that many of us often take for granted.
As the Virgin Islands are highly dependent on external sources of food supplies, it is conceivable that we can become a part of the frightening statistics that if something happens outside of our control in which we may not favour from our visit by Tropical or Crowley shipping agents, we could have a serious problem on our hands in respect to food supply.
It is also reasonable to say that our situation is further compounded by the fact that our concern is not only about our 30 thousand residents that make up our country but also the thousands of individuals that visit our shores every year. Tourism, my friends is therefore inextricably linked to our ability to ensure that the quantity and quality of food remains at an acceptable level.
Way back in the 18 centuries Thomas Jefferson told George Washington and I quote; “Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute most to real wealth, good morals and happiness.” Agriculture feeds the world and farming is part of the foundation that has brought the Virgin Islands to where it is today.
I want to pause here for a moment because when I was a youngster growing up just on the other side of the mountains in Josiah’s Bay with my grandfather, he had a fairly big farm over there and I remember only too well it wasn’t Agriculture or Farmers’ Week it was Exhibition Day. I am sure all the seniors here remember that.
Exhibition Day was a big thing in the BVI in those days. I remember with my other cousins, one of whom I see with a farm and his produce here today, trotting over the mountain via Spring Ghut, downhill with our bulls and heifers and other little produce to show off our produce on Exhibition Day.
We can see that clearly, despite challenges, the future of agriculture in the Virgin Islands must continue, but we must look at it from a different perspective and we must entertain the idea of diversity if we are going to be self sufficient.
Looking back over the last fifty (50) years, we see the progress that has been made in the agricultural industry in the Virgin Islands. Since the turn of the century there has been a shift from ploughing the land with hoe picks. I know that some of you don’t believe this because I have to remind people every now and again that I didn’t grow up with a neck tie around my neck.
Some people think that what you are today is what you have always been, but I spent some tough days in society with my grandfather down in the Sandy Bottom throwing some hoe pick in the sand and often times I have to tell people that I can take care of myself.
We have come a long way since those days ploughing the land with hoe picks we now have computerized tractors now used to prepare the soil for planting. Heavy duty equipment now create flat areas even on our hillsides for agricultural production and modern day pig and chicken processing plants demonstrate that technological advancements have been embraced by some of our farmers.
Although the local village markets remain in some way an integral part of the marketing mix, most agricultural produce are sold directly to our supermarkets, and we hope to the hotels and restaurants as the Premier just pointed out.
It is the hope and aspiration of the Department of Agriculture to continually assist and increase the ability to help those who farm to find ready markets to sell their produce.
The theme, “Celebrating 20 Years of BVI Culture through Agriculture” speaks to the milestone that the farmers and the Department of Agriculture have achieved. They have consistently promoted and sustained the agricultural element of our Virgin Islands’ heritage.
We need to look to the future. Looking towards the future, we can all envision a Virgin Islands that is more self sufficient, we have the means to do it, we just need to adopt the attitude to make it happen. There have been various initiatives that have been implemented over the years within the Department of Agriculture and we will continue to use these as stepping stones to advance our farmers.
The Ministry and Department of Agriculture will continue to encourage large scale production of food and offer assistance where ever this is possible and certainly where it is necessary. We encourage you to see the agricultural industry as a component of the trade and a very important aspect of the business sector.
The Virgin Islands have a thriving tourism industry, and I am sure that we will recognise that this provides for us a ready market for home grown agricultural products. We have many opportunities that we can access and we need to exploit these opportunities.
Over the Christmas vacation I had the opportunity to have dinner with some folks who have invested in the development at Oil Nut Bay and they had a very keen interest in learning about guava berry. They were here from the northern plains of Canada and they wanted to learn something more about what is unique about the Virgin Islands.
We talked about something that is very topical at and around the time of Christmas. They were delighted a few days later after we sent them a small gift of some guava berry syrup and some guava berry liqueur and they thought that was the greatest thing that has happened to them on their vacation.
I say this to amplify the point, that with this Tourism Industry that we have, we now need to find the ways and the means to encourage the development of what is unique to the Virgin Islands.
To make sure that we don’t just think simply in terms of the pumpkin and the potatoes but now how we can develop these products, to refine them in a way that is attractive to our visitors. If you have done any travelling in your life, you know that one of the most important things is that when you go to a new country, you want to take back something that is unique to that country.
So we have to change our thought processing, we have to change our approach and our attitude to understand that the way we have done things, it has worked but in a new world we need to have different approaches and we have to develop things that are unique to the country and put them in a position that we can market them to be able to sell to our visitors.
The Chief Agricultural Officer just mentioned about the greenhouses and I am sure that it is a topical question that the investments made in the greenhouse technology is something that we have to build upon if we are going to sustain the Agricultural Sector and to improve and ensure that our Territory becomes more competitive and if we are going to be self sustaining in the use of the technology that the greenhouses can produce.
So whatever the challenge is that we may face with the project, the project that has been started, we have to find ways to ensure that the greenhouse technology can be used and eventually work to produce the products that it is designed to produce.
I say this from time to time, if they can produce the quantity of food that they produce in the desert of Israel, there is no reason why we can’t produce food in the needed quantity that we here in the Virgin Islands deserve.
We have to use a mixture of what we have known or what we now know and the emerging technologies that are before us, Agriculture cannot remain stagnant.
The Farmers who have been working are known for their hard work, discipline, consistency and perseverance and I have no doubt that our farmers will continue to rise to the challenge. There is much that can be said about those among us that produce food for our consumption and I applaud their efforts both past and present.
I remember that my grandfather had one of the largest sugar cane plantations in Josiah’s Bay and every now and again I go to Josiah’s Bay and I think back, what an opportune time now for us to have that particular institution with sugar cane growing in Josiah’s Bay because the local rum that we used to produce, that good cane rum. I could remember smelling it. I remember those days.
In today’s BVI when I think about it and I think to myself, that’s an industry that we could revive. If only for the sake of producing the rum that will be unique to these Virgin Islands and it is something we need to think about.
I applaud the efforts of all our farmers who are here and those who have gone before us in trying to produce food for the members of our community.
We in the Ministry and Department of Agriculture would like to take this opportunity to thank all of you who are here today and we implore you to continue as you walk around to view the stalls, visiting the Farmers’ Week exhibition has become an annual tradition within the Territory and now forms part of our history as a people.
I hope that I have given you a small bit of that history that is a part of my own upbringing and my heritage.
At this time, I would like to extend heartfelt congratulations to the winners and I look forward to an exciting week of activities.
I take this opportunity to officially declare the Agriculture’s Farmers’ Week open.
May God bless you and may God continue to bless these Virgin Islands.
Thank you.
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