Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Pearnel Charles Jr, speaking with (from left) Christopher Brown, Project Manager – BIGEE, Development Bank of Jamaica; and Shelley Heaven, Co-founder and CEO of FarmLinkr, at the launch of the DBJ Agribiz Programme. The $1-billion DBJ Agribiz Programme will provide loans for farmers and fishers to develop and expand their businesses.
Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Pearnel Charles Jr, has announced that farmers and fishers across Jamaica will now have access to a $1 billion loan fund through the Development Bank of Jamaica (DBJ) AGRIBIZ Programme, which is aimed at helping the sector to build back better.
The announcement was made during a ceremony held on the ministry’s lawns on Tuesday, July 19.
The move forms part of the Government of Jamaica’s commitment to boost food security and transform the sector from small ventures into medium and large-scale businesses.
Speaking during the event, the minister commended the DBJ for launching the much-needed financing tool through its mission of “providing opportunities to all Jamaicans to improve their quality of life through development financing, capacity building, and public-private partnership”.
“There is no bar as farmers who need help to restart their businesses can benefit as well as small farmers who need technical assistance and want to move their farming business from the micro level to something bigger, more viable and sustainable,” the Minister continued.
Noting that over the last two years, the agriculture and fisheries sector has had devastating losses due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and other external shocks, the minister said the agriculture and fisheries sector has potential and remains a major driver of economic growth as it currently employs over 250,000 people or some 22-25% of the country’s labour force and contributes to some 8.68% of Gross Domestic Product.
“If you look at the Planning Institute of Jamaica’s review of the economic performance of our country, it shows that our agricultural sector up to the June 2022 quarter shows the country experienced major growth in several subsectors as our country is rebounding,” the Minister explained.
The first quarter showed that there was a 10.4% growth in domestic crops, which includes fruits at 20%, plantains at 19.8% and potatoes at 10.9%, over the corresponding period in 2021.
“We have also seen our traditional crop exports growing by 7.8% and I think that that is essential for us to focus on with crops like bananas overall growing by 10.1% and cocoa at 57%. Our animal farming livestock sector also grew by 5.2% despite the challenges that you saw with circumstances regarding poultry,” he added.
Even with the sector experiencing another record-producing quarter, Charles Jr said the ministry remains cognizant of the circumstances farmers are facing due to the ongoing external issues the island continues to confront, like many other countries, and is constantly working to alleviate such concerns and offer support.
“We spoke about it long time, we speak about growing the sector, but it is now more important than ever as we face mounting challenges head-on so that Jamaica’s ability to feed itself continues to be realised.
The new DBJ initiative will see both new and established farmers being able to access financial assistance and technical support.
“I believe that we will also have workshops designed to increase the financial inclusion of micro farmers in the formal financial sector and help them to develop good business practices to grow their businesses and the sector.
“I am happy to see the DBJ AgriBiz loan facility come to fruition as it adds to the collaborative efforts that already exist with the DBJ and the Ministry,” the minister said.
The funds will be administered through the DBJ’s islandwide network of approved financial institutions and microfinance institutions.
The DBJ also announced two new scholarships for students at the College of Agriculture, Science and Education, which is based in Portland.
One of the scholarships will be specific to female applicants as the Ministry continues its push to encourage and support female farmers and fishers in the sector.
-30-
