400 farmers get technical training

FOUR HUNDRED farmers were presented with certificates of completion on Wednesday, December 18, after an eight-month capacity-building training programme geared at improving their technical skills.

The areas covered by the training were good agricultural practices, water management, crop nutrition, sprayer calibration, food safety, pest management and harvesting, among other topics.

The programme, which was led by the Rural Agricultural

Development Authority (RADA), saw farmers from Bull Savannah and Southfield in St Elizabeth, Windalco in St Catherine, Kirkvine in Manchester, and Water Valley in St Ann in attendance.

Training was facilitated under the ninth cycle of the Basic Needs

Trust Fund, which is aimed at enhancing the living conditions in poor and vulnerable communities. It is being implemented by the Jamaica Social Investment Fund (JSIF) and is funded by the Caribbean Development Bank to the tune of US$8.9 million.

Speaking at a graduation ceremony at the Church of God of Prophecy on Old Harbour Road, St Catherine, Chief Executive Officer of RADA Peter Thompson said it is important to continuously build the capacity of farmers, especially given such environmental threats as climate change.

“We know that what is happening in the environment, especially with climate change, requires mitigation strategies and adaptation (measures). The only way to be successful when there is variability in climate is to continuously build capacity, to learn new things and new measures,” he said.

NETWORKING

Thompson urged farmers of the various groups to build relationships and deepen their network. He also encouraged them to utilise technology.

Meanwhile, JSIF Managing Director Omar Sweeney said that his agency has been working for the last 23 years to tackle poverty and has partnered with RADA over the years in this regard.

He said the aim of this latest collaboration between the two entities “sought to deepen and improve the capacities” of the farmers, and it was important for them to be trained to be able to sustain Jamaica’s agricultural sector by chipping away at imports.

“We know that Jamaica spends in excess of a billion US dollars a year importing food to Jamaica, and we know that it is an incredible market for farmers to access. The types of produce to access the market are high-value crops. We have to improve our technology and our practices,” he said.