Agriculture in focus as CWA 2023 gets underway Monday in The Bahamas
The Bahamas will be a buzz of activity next week when the 17th Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) gets underway under the theme ‘Accelerating Vision 25 by 2025’.
The CWA, the premier event on the region’s agriculture calendar, provides a forum for the key decision-makers in the public and private sectors within the Region to highlight the importance of agriculture and rural life to the economic, social and environmental stability of Member States. It also affords the major stakeholders in agriculture and related sectors the opportunity to forge a common vision for the development of agriculture and the enhancement of rural life.
It is organised by the CARICOM Secretariat in collaboration with major partners, the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Caribbean Agricultural, Research and Development Institute (CARDI), the CARICOM Private Sector Organisation (CPSO), the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the World Food Programme, the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), the Agriculture Alliance for the Caribbean (AACARI), the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (PECS) and the ACP-MEAs.
This year, the week of activities will begin with a field trip on Monday, 9 October, while the official opening will be held on the morning of Tuesday, 10 October, at The Bahamas Breezes Resort and Spa in Nassau, where all the other activities will be held.
Opening ceremony
Prime Minister of The Bahamas, the Hon. Philip Davis, will deliver the keynote address and declare the CWA open. The ceremony will be livestreamed and will feature remarks by the Minister of Agriculture of The Bahamas, the Hon Jomo Campbell; the Secretary-General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Dr. Carla Barnett; the Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Dr. Manuel Otero; the Executive Director of the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI), Mr. Ansari Hosein; the Sub-Regional Coordinator of the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), Dr. Renata Clarke; Representative and Country Director of the World Food Programme, Mr. Regis Chapman.
During the opening ceremony, awards will be presented to the Farmer of the Year and the Youth Farmer of the Year.
Seminars and workshops
Almost 300 delegates have registered so far to participate in the technical sessions which are spearheaded by partner agencies. The sessions will address topics such as digitisation of agriculture; investment opportunities in the region; plant breeding; biosafety; natural resource management in the face of climate change; sustainable use of marine living resources; the cost of healthy eating; empowering women in agriculture, and water security.
Given the theme of the event, and the threat to the region’s food systems, several sessions with focus on attaining the 25 by 2025 goal. There will also be a youth dialogue, a women’s forum, and a regional conversation on cannabis.
More than 40 exhibitors have already registered to showcase their produce and highlight their agri-businesses at the Trade Show and Exposition which will be held throughout the week.
Council for Trade and Economic Development
The focus on reducing the region’s food import bill by 25 per cent by 2025 will be one of the key matters before Ministers of Agriculture at the Special Meeting of COTED which will be held on 13 October. The Ministers will also hold discussions on agricultural policy, increasing agricultural production and trade, agricultural health and food safety, and empowering rural communities, including youth and women. The Ministerial meeting is the final event of the week of activities.
Please join us via our social media platforms for the livestream of events of the CWA:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caricom.org
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/caricomorg
X: https://twitter.com/CARICOMorg
LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3Q2947I
Please also visit the CWA news site: cwa2023.caricom.org for more information on the week of activities.
Source: CARICOM TODAY