Emergency Agricultural Livelihoods and Climate Resilience Project launched

Austrie

A project designed to help farmers and fisher folk affected by Hurricane Maria to restore their agriculture and fishing livelihoods and adopt climate resilience practices, has been launched. 

The project dubbed, ‘Ministry of Agriculture Food and Fisheries Dominica Emergency Agricultural Livelihoods and Climate Resilience Project (DEALCRP) was launched during a ceremony held in the Ministry of Finance conference room on Friday. 

This project represents one of the largest investments in agriculture in recent times and is geared at transforming the agricultural sector, according to Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Reginald Thomas. 

Following the devastation of Hurricane Maria in September 2017, the government of Dominica with financial support from the World Bank amounting to US$25 million, has started the implementation of the DEALCRP, a five-year period intervention.   

“This project, if executed properly, will signal a revival of the agricultural sector from the pre-Maria period…” Minister for Agriculture Food and Fisheries, Reginald Austrie said while addressing the ceremony. 

He said the project has four main components. 

“Component one is the restoration of the recovery of agricultural livelihoods with an amount of some $21 million,” he revealed. “Component B will deal with the restoration of key production infrastructure and -institutional, livestock and forestry; US$5.2 million is budgeted for that component of the programme.” 

Austrie continued, “The third component of the programme includes project management and coordination to an amount of some $2.1 million…and the fourth component will be a contingency emergency response of US$25 million.” 

About 4000 farmers and fisher folk will receive support from the agricultural project. 

“Farmers, to include crop farmers, livestock and fishers as well as canoe and boat builders, will receive support from the project,” Austrie stated. 

He explained that to be eligible, the crop farmers must be involved in farming on a full-time or part-time basis and crop production should be a major source of his income. 

“This time public officers are included,” the minister revealed. 

He went on to say that crop and livestock farmers must show legal identification and show proof of land ownership or have a legal document of a lease/ agreement for at least 3 years. 

“Fisher folk must be registered with the Fisheries Division and be owners of at least a 15 feet boat or larger,” Austrie indicated. 

Stephenson

Meantime, Manager of the Project Implementation Unit (PIU), Kervin Stephenson said the implementation of the project is very timely and important.

He said the contribution of that project to restoring livelihood is significant, “to restoring our food security base, to ensuring that we have employment back in rural communities and more importantly, the restoration of our economic base.

Stephenson hopes by the end of the 4 years that there will be a significant contribution made in restoration of the sector and more importantly the restoration of livelihoods, “because Dominica is still very much dependent on agriculture.”

Stephenson stated that agriculture still contributes over 40 percent of rural livelihoods in terms of rural employment.

He added that the project is basically restoring not only the productive base of farmers, but the infrastructure of the Ministry.

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26 Comments

  1. Casio
    August 12, 2019

    why is it and Emergency Program? All of a sudden we are in a serious state? that an Emergency program is needed?

  2. Ibo france
    August 10, 2019

    DNO you need a COMEDY CORNER. One joke per week. It should be headlined: Joke Of The Week. Laughter adds years to your life.
    Throwing out a few temptations:
    *The color RED matches perfectly well with Austrie. Both stand for DANGER.
    *Can anyone guess Austrie’s favorite hobby? EATING!
    * If you are obese and want to lose weight run around Austrie three times per day for exercise.

  3. dee
    August 10, 2019

    whats the name ?
    deal crap ?
    allu dow tired fool de foolish .

  4. RealObserver
    August 10, 2019

    Austria and your Cabal the writing is on the wall. YOUR FATE IS SEALED! Nothing your guys do will save you. :oops:

  5. bribery!
    August 10, 2019

    Is this your new way of buying votes? You’ve realized that the coolouts are attracting too much scrutiny, especially now that Dominicans are asking “Oh ti largent ah” for the missing billion dollars? Let’s see how many votes you will buy this time, we’ll be watching. We’ll be looking for the plane tickets, ferry tickets, rentals, tanks of gas, WCMF tickets, free alcohol, free BBQ, pocket change. You will not get away with it this time!

  6. Lennox for PM
    August 10, 2019

    UWP Team Dominica just mentioned the other day how poorly our agriculture has been doing and boom, money start spending in agriculture. Ladies and gentlemen, there is a pattern emerging of UWP acting and DLP reacting. UWP says “nothing is happening”, soon after that DLP starts projects. You see that’s what happens when your degrees are not real. You have the doctor’s coat on and stethoscope round your neck, but you don’t really know what you’re doing. So you spying what the real doctors are doing from the corner of your eye and copying their every move. They pick up the scalpel,… you pick up the scalpel. A typical con man move. Skerrit, how you saying you want the best for this country nuh? Then, let the the real leader of this country step up.

  7. Weh we money deh?
    August 10, 2019

    Austrie, you have the biggest mouth in DLP. I’m not hearing you calling Lennox a liar, like Tony, Sam and Clarence. Is it because Lennox is telling the truth? Austrie, tell us where the money 💰 is.

  8. DLP failure
    August 10, 2019

    Too little too late. Your DLP government has FAILED. You have FAILED our farmers, FAILED our teachers, FAILED our doctors, FAILED our police, FAILED our nurses,
    FAILED our youth, FAILED our indegenous people, FAILED our athletes, FAILED our diaspora. YOU’RE FIRED!

  9. Ibo france
    August 10, 2019

    Anyone with a modicum of common sense knows that this is a political game by Austrie and his deceptive recruits. Why were all these things not talked about or done before the eve of a pending election? Why now this flurry of activities.? This foolery worked before but MUST not work this time around. Dominicans, are you better off than five (5) years ago? Remember last election they promised you heaven on earth and instead gave you five years of HARD LABOUR? Do you want to serve five more years of empty stomach, joblessness, dependency, health woes, broken promises, starvation wages and salaries? How often did Skerrit and the Ministers/Parl. Reps visit your community to hear your concerns and get a first hand idea about your living conditions? Now they coming only to seek your vote. Use your vote on polling day like the rod of correction.

  10. I farmer
    August 10, 2019

    ‘Project management and coordination’ – $2.1million. That say plenty. Money in wrong pockets. There is no point throwing money at agriculture without creating markets and better access to markets. This country needs a receiving station (like what we had for bananas), and refrigerated vessels for transportation of our produce to other islands. Agriculture will never succeed without better access to regional markets. Farmers must know that someone is going to buy their produce and young people must know that they will be rewarded for getting into farming. Also, testing of produce must be not just for the foreigners staying in hotels. When we buy at the market how do we know how much chemical have been used on produce and if it safe? We don’t know because produce is never tested for domestic consumption. Haitian farmers use too much chemical. This project will waste millions, just like all them others that went before. Three words for you sir: Castle Bruce irrigation. This all…

    • RandyX
      August 12, 2019

      More words: Calibishie irrigation! It was installed 6 years ago at considerable cost by the EU but Dowasco is incapable of putting water through it. Now if anybody tells me that we have a competent government or a competent water company… Well then I don’t know.

  11. RandyX
    August 10, 2019

    Pre election propaganda at its best. This is one desperate man, one desperate party and one desperate PM. For 4 years at a time they let things deteriorate and half a years before election they apply a little plaster to a wound that requires major surgery. The cunningness of these people is unique.

  12. Zammm
    August 9, 2019

    From the time Austrie in something it’s madness and chaos… Since these guys lay their hands on something, or sign a doc or touch something wellll it gone….
    Such a waste of time administration, unfortunately who brought Dominica in the gutters….
    Always some stupid talk by this Austrie…
    Look who is Deputy pm……

  13. My Bad
    August 9, 2019

    Austrie himself is a case of emergency. The man is a serious hazzard to Dominica. Hope we always have a Helicopter ready to fly him over.

  14. Ibo france
    August 9, 2019

    Agriculture should be a BIG DEAL in Dominica. The soil is rich, there is water in abundance, there is all year round sunshine, ideal conditions for farming. We are blessed with the perfect natural ingredients for agriculture. Very unfortunately the people put a wrecking crew in command. They have been nothing but disastrous. They have destroyed agriculture, the healthcare sector, numerous businesses, public buildings, jobs, they have decimated the country. They have to vacate office. It’s all over for them.

  15. Way the money gone?
    August 9, 2019

    Stupeseseseseseses Mr is a fraudster He belly not full yet? More he belly fool more he hungry. I describe his as the waste of time minister

    • dee
      August 10, 2019

      Can someone tell me something positive about Scott’s Head.
      is there any consideration of the village expansion ? or is the Government going to build another shack on the bay front for some unfortunate person .
      I pray that the sea I know, and seen, when really angry maintains its peace for some time to come .
      without sea wall protection many of those houses at the sea front are at the mercy of God . When ? oh WHEN?
      I have never experienced such neglect of the entire village in all of my 70 years ; and the people dem saying nothing .
      I know they going to soon shout , ” wee Bonjai oi ”nou fini batte ” but it will really be too late .

  16. FOR LOVE OF COUNTRY
    August 9, 2019

    You’ll are now coming out of the closet…. God eternally blesses Hon Lennox Linton

  17. Annon
    August 9, 2019

    The climate is being changed by the planes that are essentially military based which are spraying all of us as well as the environment with chemicals. There are outfits such as private corporations, NASA, air force, pentagon, NOA and HAARP which are involved in conducting experiments on us and the environment which will lead to destruction of life and this planet. They are destroying our water and food supply. Get educated and don’t buy into the resilience stuff. The trick is how to stop all of this destruction.

  18. greed
    August 9, 2019

    Mr. Austrie your clock is ticking time to retire. You need a break.

  19. greed
    August 9, 2019

    So Stephenson wanted a job…so he volunteered then he get one. SMH

    • Alien
      August 13, 2019

      What better way to get a job but to volunteer you skill and services towards what you know and have experience in. Your reward should be as is.

  20. LifeandDeath
    August 9, 2019

    “revival of the agricultural sector from the pre-Maria period” is a good thing is that he said, because it is true that even before Maria agriculture needed Revival..
    I think Reggie dem have done enough of nothing and it’s time for them to step aside.
    Dominica can do Better, and by now it is clear to see that it’s not for shortage of Money, but rather for a lack of expertise and Skills to run a country.
    Note it’s been 2 years since Maria and now this “project” comes around, is it coincidence that elections is near too?..Everything this Gov’t has done is always geared towards catching votes..

  21. dissident
    August 9, 2019

    i noticed that marketing of agricultural produce is not allocated for
    what about de boat to transport agricultural produce?

    • Joseph John
      August 9, 2019

      Great question. Maybe they cannot mention details of variables in this project, but marketing is a key component. Production is not a major problem. You have annual and multiple year crops. You just have to tell farmers that you will buy 10 tons of dasheen or bananas cash on arrival guaranteed, and you will get more than ten. If you tell farmers you will buy all their coconuts in 3 to 5 years the same result. Marketing is the main problem. Scouting, penetration and delivery problems must be solved NOW. We should have food security, and a surplus in our balance of trade in food like yesterday.(export)
      The examples of dasheen, bananas and coconuts were chosen because they are not seasonal. You can make money year found.
      Fisheries is a given. You can make money everyday. The situation should be so organized that a fisherman should have depots where he deliver his catch and get paid. He should not be a vendor. Let marketing organization(s) do storage and sales. Train? !

    • Joseph John
      August 9, 2019

      Fisheries development is urgent because it has claim as a health food.
      We have the recourses in 200 mile limit as our economic zone, a 12 mile territorial limit. we have lakes and 365 rivers and 200 inches of annual rainfall to augment fish farming. We can also build artificial lakes for fish farming. We should be exporting containers of fish at least on a weekly basis. Right next door in Martinique fresh fish farming is on the go.
      The UN has explained that the world is at risk for food security because of climate change. We could tap into the UN and the FAO (and UNICEF) for technical assistance in this regard. We can use this situation of food security as leverage for international assistance. We should be first in line.

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