Nevis receives its share of a federal technical cooperation project

Dr Timothy Harris (in dark suit) poses with the delegation from Nevis that was led by Keithly Amory.

St. Kitts (March 16, 2010) Peter Ngunjiri…The Director of Agriculture in St. Kitts, Ashton Stanley, on Monday revealed that relationship between the sister islands, St. Kitts and Nevis, is cordial as the two shared proceeds from a Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) funded Technical Cooperation Project in a proportion of two to one.

He made the remarks at the Department of Agriculture in LaGuerite at a ceremony where Senior Minister and Minister of Agriculture Dr Timothy Harris handed over farming implements to a cross section of food and tree crop farmers from both St. Kitts and Nevis. The implements were purchased with proceeds of funds from Technical Cooperation Project number 3103.

Stanley, who chaired the short ceremony that was attended by about 40 farmers and ministry staff, said that an amount of over $81,000 was the balance from funds that were meant to see through Technical Cooperation Project number 3103, as only one of the four experts came to facilitate the project.

“Technical Cooperation Project number 3103 was a federal project, meaning that all benefits that were given to St. Kitts were also received in Nevis,” said the Director of Agriculture. “The Nevis people are not here today because of my invitation but because of the mandate that I got from the FAO, to share the resources.”

He advised that the fund proceeds, which would go to assist rabbit farmers and food and tree crop farmers, were shared in a proportion 2-1 between St. Kitts and Nevis. On Monday, food and tree crop farmers from the two islands received farming implements worth $4,385.

Dr Timothy Harris hands a power saw to Keithly Amory. Looking on are Paul Benjamin (left) and Ashton Amory.

An amount of $76,950, from the same project, will go towards assisting rabbit farming in the Federation. Rabbit farmers who have formed an association in St. Kitts are expected to start constructing the sheds to hold the rabbits shortly.

He advised the farmers that the best thanks they could give was to take care of the items distributed to them, noting that if they used them well, their efforts as farmers working cooperatively would have a multiplier effect.

Director of Agriculture on Nevis, Keithly Amory, who had led the Nevis delegation to the handing over ceremony, said that the Department of Agriculture on Nevis was pleased with their counterparts in St. Kitts in this venture, while at the same time also pleading with the farmers to work together.

“Unless farmers get together, we will not benefit from projects like these within the FAO,” said Amory. “We cannot always depend on government to get everything that is needed. But we do need farmers binding together such that we can tap into projects such as these. I am quite pleased that Mr Stanley saw it fit to include us in this project.”