Nassau,
Bahamas - In an effort to assist the Government of The Bahamas with its
goal to increase food production, the Embassy of the People’s Republic
of China donated 15 greenhouses recently.
The greenhouses, which vary in size, will be distributed in Grand Bahama and throughout the Family Islands.
Minister
of Agriculture, Marine Resources and Family Island Affairs the Hon.
Clay Sweeting, Parliamentary Secretary Leonardo Lightbourne along with
Permanent Secretary Joel Lewis were on hand to receive the items.
Minister Sweeting expressed gratitude on behalf of the Government of The Bahamas.
“I
would like to sincerely thank you for these greenhouses, which speak to
our blueprint for change. Agriculture plays a significant role in
finding ways to feed ourselves. Big things start small and real change
starts with ideas. These greenhouses will definitely play an
instrumental role in finding new ways of farming techniques and ideas to
feed ourselves,” he said.
The Minister mentioned that Agriculture contributes only 0.8 percent of GDP, a rate he is looking to drastically change.
“I
look forward to working with you in the future because it is very
important to myself and my ministry that Agriculture becomes prominent
in our country and where people feel that they can be
business-oriented,” Minister Sweeting said.
People’s
Republic of China Ambassador to The Bahamas Dai Qingli said the Embassy
is looking forward to continuing to work with the government and further
the countries’ mutual beneficial cooperation.
“The raging pandemic
has highlighted once again the importance of the Agricultural sector and
the imperative of reducing the cost of living for the average
Bahamian,” she said.
“I very much support the minister’s objective
to make Agriculture more appealing to Bahamians and attracting more
investment into this vital sector. Agriculture has a big potential to be
commercially viable as is shown with our experience with working your
Caribbean neighbours. Today’s donation of greenhouses is only a small
beginning to what we hope to be a growing Agricultural partnership
between our countries. I’m glad that the minister has just expressed his
commitment of working with us.”
The Ambassador said the two countries have long been in discussions to further develop the Agriculture industry.
“It
is now time to put our ideas into practice by working together on the
ground and in the fields. I look forward to discussions with the
minister to understand his priorities and to see how we can best work
with him,” Ambassador Qingli said.
