MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE SEEKING TO ATTRACT AND SUPPORT MORE WOMEN IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR

Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 7, 2022 (SKNIS): The Ministry of Agriculture recognizes the valuable contribution that women have been making in the agricultural sector and has engaged several women farmers in fruitful discussions with the purpose of implementing a range of measures to further support local women’s participation in the agricultural sector.

The ministry noticed an increase in women’s interest in agriculture over the second half of 2021 following the Women’s Farmers Academy six-week virtual training held by Helen’s Daughters out of Saint Lucia and the Food4Change Organisation.

Coming out of the training, the Ministry of Agriculture then partnered with the Ministry of Health to find strategies that would attract more women to get actively involved in agriculture.

The meeting, which took place on Friday, February 4, 2022, offered support to women through the Ministry of Agriculture’s Farmers Assistance Programme to incentivize women within the Federation.

“In meeting with the women today, a number of decisions were made. We will be hosting on International Women’s Day a Women in Agriculture Conference to look at women in fisheries, crop production, agro-processing and livestock production,” said Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Ron Dublin-Collins.

Out of the training, the women agreed to form a network to work in conjunction with the Ministry of Agriculture. The formation of the network will be a St. Kitts Nevis chapter of the current Caribbean organization dubbed Caribbean Network of Rural Women Producers.

The Food4Change Organisation which is a four-year data gathering body that looks at interventions in St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Vincent and the Grenadines and Jamaica to combat Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) in collaboration with Helen’s Daughters used the opportunity to hold the training programme for women in the final quarter of last year.

The women involved received certificates in December of 2021.

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