The Government of Dominica is expected to receive assistance from the Indian Government in the field of agro-processing. Indian High Commissioner to the OECS, His Excellency Malay Mishra, confirmed this during a press conference at the GIS studios earlier this month.
“Dr. Kumar was here who is again, coming back. He says that the banana fruit itself has a hundred uses in entirety. Any part of the banana tree can be used for some other production. So, we would like to do more and more of that. We would like to see how best your capacity could be further utilized; and for that as I mentioned, we are going to bring in the NSIC which is the National Small Investors Corporation. They have come here before. They bring in small technology but they are also into agro processing. We therefore want to bring in NSIC with agriculture and see how best we can do what we mentioned, that is agro-processing. We are very much focused on that. It will take time to develop but we are committed to see it happen,” he said.
H.E. Mishra also indicated that his Government is willing to transfer information and skills to Dominica’s agricultural sector.
“You see now people are not exactly using traditional methods. They are going on to using more mechanisation, more scientific processes are developed, more bio-technological developments are coming into the field, so that are the kind of things we are doing in India and would like to transfer those experiences also to here, wherever possible and bring in the best what we can with less people doing the same jobs and getting more output,” he pointed out.
This is good news, providing that we do not become too complacent and expect India, or any other donor country, to do it all. We must develop our own initiatives.
In recent years India has became a world leader in the field of mechanical engineering through her own efforts. Fifty years ago, when the UK machine tool industry began to decline, India seized the opportunity, bought the redundant machines – some of the finest machine tools ever made – at rock bottom prices and created her own dynamic engineering industries.
Thanks in advance India for the promise to assist in Agro-Processing. I hope there will be follow up and action to see this through. I will leave it at that for now.
Grea!!! Teach a man to fish you don’t have to continue feeding him, give him a fish and you will have to continue feeding him.. Thank you India on behalf of Dominica… But watch what the Chinese are going to do.. Keep all eyes on that dial!!