The Tribune

THE Bahamas Agricultural and Industrial Corporation’s visit to Cuba this month included high-level discussions with officials from the Cuban Ministry of Agriculture and a tour of Central Havana’s urban agriculture learning facility.

Representing the Cuban Ministry of Agriculture was Darge Torres Ojeda, a technical specialist in the ministry’s International Department.

The BAIC delegation was headed by executive chairman Arnold Forbes, who was accompanied by consultant Godfrey Eneas and BAIC officials Ben Rahming, Arnold Dorsett, Judith Thompson, Donna Lee Bowe, Aarone Sargent and Alphonso Smith.

Mr Torres outlined the challenges facing Cuban agriculture since the fall of the Soviet Union, which caused the loss of export markets to Eastern Europe and led to the need for Cuba to revamp its agricultural policies and programmes.

He said following this realignment, Cuba has focused on organic farming, urban agriculture, and the development of biopesticides and bio-fertilizers – generating safe, fresh and nutritious foods.

Cuba now places great emphasis of small-scale farming, supporting these efforts through co-operatives and training, with at least one Farm School in each province.

The BAIC agricultural and trade mission also took part in high level discussions in Havana, where Mr Forbes said the government of the Bahamas is aware of the need to agree on protocols for plant and animal health.

He said these protocols are essential for the start of trade in agricultural commodities between Cuba and the Bahamas.

Consultant Mr Eneas said the discussions also focused on the transfer of technical assistance to establish an agricultural school in the Bahamas, introduction of new crop varieties suitable for our climate, improvement of livestock and breeding, enhancement of our Urban Agriculture Programme and farm labour assistance.

The Bahamian delegates were then taken on a tour of an urban agriculture facility in Central Havana.

The facility houses an organic farm specialising in a range of vegetables and using biopesticides, biofertilisers and animal traction instead of farm machinery.

At the end of the visit, Cuban officials offered to send an agricultural technical delegation to evaluate the needs of the Bahamas and map out a plan of action.

It is anticipated that the Cuban delegation could be here before the end of this year.