Efforts being made to properly regularise local fishers and farmers
Agriculture Minister Dr Natalio Wheatley said there are ongoing efforts to register and license all commercial fishers and farmers in the territory.
According to Dr Wheatley, traditionally, the existing register has not properly represented commercial fishing or farming in the BVI.
While speaking in the House of Assembly on Monday, he said the government will also introduce “a proper agricultural and fisheries census”.
The census will form part of what the Agriculture Minister described as the Virgin Islands Food Security & Sustainability bill, which is to be submitted to the Cabinet for approval.
The minister explained that the bill will seek to establish an effective mechanism to create a well-regulated regime for food security and sustainability in the territory.
He said the government has already injected millions into the sector which has assisted fishers and farmers to get on their feet after the 2017 hurricanes and during the ongoing health pandemic.
The minister also noted that government has established a dedicated source of funding for the sector in the seven percent money services tax, which has so far pumped $1.4 million into agriculture and fisheries locally.
He said this will greatly assist in establishing infrastructure and programmes for the advancement of the sector.
These announcements from the minister come amid heavy public scrutiny towards government since they distributed more than $6 million in stimulus assistance grants into the sector last year.
Government’s internal auditor as well as the Office of the Auditor General both criticised the distribution of those grants. The distribution, which has raised serious concerns, has formed part of matters for which the ongoing Commission of Inquiry (COI) is investigating.
Copyright 2024 BVI News, Media Expressions Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
Why weren’t they registered before they were given those fat hefty cheques?
These idiots better act fast because bill gates bought the majority of farmlands in america,so i guess they are gonna be more healthy(poisoned) greens in those big supermarkets soon.
I am sick and tired of the nonsense by this government. Regularizing your fake farmers and fisher folk will not save you from the wrong already committed. Many of those people given monies were not commercial farmers or fishermen but were given monies. Many of them got way more than what they applied for.
Sick and tired of you people.
According to the SCRIPT and the large fellow isn’t taking any QUESTIONS just do as you are told
to tell you how bad it is, everytime they talk about farming and fishing they use the same pic of that circle garden, thats to tell you how hard it is to find them.. lol
What is the COI verdict? Please hurry up! Sick and tired of the nonsense from this government. strupezzzz
election right around the bend so they trying to make it look like dry doing something ……sick of this rubbish
I have one in Carrot Bay,her hand dont touch the ground. She clear her garden with a shears. Ain’t plant half of what she selling. Them who work for government it should be taken out of the salary or pension!
A little too late for that. You already gave away millions to fake farmers and fishers and left a lot of the real one to wither and die… What is sickening is all of you continue to spew lie after lie