By Damion Mitchell, Staff ReporterJUST AS farmers in the south-western sections of the island began picking up the pieces from the devastating effects of Hurricane Charley which lashed the island one month ago, Ivan 'the terrible' struck a catastrophic blow right across the country.
Up to last Friday, the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) had not yet completed a detailed survey of the damage caused by the disaster but agricultural stakeholders indicated at a meeting with Minister of Agriculture, Roger Clarke, last Tuesday, that the damage could run into billions of dollars.
Their assessments along with RADA's preliminary findings are to be presented to members of the Cabinet tomorrow as the Government attempts to rehabilitate the farming sector.
BANANA SECTOR
The banana sector has set its initial damage bill at $1 billion while other sectors such as sugar and coffee, which are key foreign exchange earners, have reported losses of between 10 and 40 per cent of their current production.
The fishing sector was not spared the wrath of the Hurricane as fish farmers both inland and marine were hammered. Fisherfolk from the fishing villages of Old Harbour Bay, Treasure Beach and Whitehouse have had their livelihoods suppressed, but a much more chilling story beckons in Hill Run, St. Catherine, where flood waters from the clogged 'Town Gully' which runs from Spanish Town to the sea coast, dumped huge volumes of water on several aquaculture farms resulting in widespread inundation.
Several aquaculture farm managers who operate in Hill Run put a conservative estimate on their losses at between $1.5 million and $2 million as a result of the flooding of their properties, but the real losses will be known in the next few weeks when their tilapias should be ready for the market.
UNKIND PERSONS
If this was not enough, then the act of some unkind persons seemingly dissatisfied with the catches they obtained from nearby puddles and drains as a consequence of the flooding, was appalling. Having removed hundreds of fish displaced by the flood which had covered the farm, men from far and near according to the farm operators, have been attempting to poach more tilapias from their farms.
Paula Sterling told The Gleaner on Thursday that as a result she has had to erect additional fences to keep out the thieves.
In the meantime Craig Francis, president of the Jamaica Aquaculture Association, says the flooding of the five farms spanning hundreds of acres, could have been minimised had the 'Town Gully' running through the farms been cleaned by the authorities.
He further said that the flooding was impacted by the construction of the second phase of Highway 2000 near to the fish-farming village from which huge volumes of water intended for the 'Town Gully' are channelled onto the farms.
This situation is considered to be especially discouraging since a special oversight committee had been set up to examine the effects of the Highway 2000 development project.
According to Mr. Francis, he apprised the committee headed by Joy Douglas, a Senior Urban Regional Planner, of the concern but to date there has been no favourable response. Mrs. Douglas could not be reached for comment on Friday.
In the meantime there is the belief among the farm operators in Hill Run that the authorities have ignored their concerns and this will continue to affect their earning capacities.
Already, there are projections that there could be food scarcity given the widespread devastation to the agricultural sector especially given that it could take as much as four years to rebound providing that the conditions for production are conducive. This means that importation was now no longer a matter of choice but compulsion. According to Keith Amiel, corporate affairs manager at Caribbean Broilers Jamaica Limited one of the island's largest poultry producers importation must be done in a structured way to ensure that jobs are guaranteed when the sector recovers.
LIMITING IMPORTERS
He has even suggested that the Government considers limiting importers to licensed processors at least for the poultry industry to prevent an uncontrollable 'import sector'.
The Government has recognised the possibility for unsystematic imports with the Agriculture Minister stressing: "We have to strike the balance... Those people who even in good times were intent on flooding Jamaica with foreign goods will not have their field day."
Prime Minister Patterson has also said that the decision to pursue importation would be made with the understanding that the Ministry of Agriculture, through RADA, would spearhead an urgent replanting programme, focusing initially on crops which could be cultivated in a short time.
However, with the decision to increase imports, the issue of proper quarantine facilities must be prioritised. Hurricane Ivan had caused severe damage to some of the Agriculture Ministry's quarantine facilities in Kingston, but the Ministry had assured that there is an alternative location at Bodles, St. Catherine.
It cannot be over-emphasised that at this time quarantining must be effected with the strictest policies to protect the vulnerable industry.
Addressing the issue of importation, Dr. Marshall Hall, managing director of the Jamaica Producers Group the island's largest banana producers suggests that although the banana industry has been extensively damaged by the hurricane, it would be wise to avoid importing planting materials. He said this would further expose the industry to diseases, which could be catastrophic, especially given that the nation was already grappling with the deadly Moko Disease which has the ability to devastate an entire industry.
In St. Elizabeth, one of the hardest hit parishes, farmers have been appealing for relief assistance in the form of inputs since the onslaught of Hurricane Charley in August.
Meantime, the Jamaica Agricultural Society (JAS) has taken a lead role in sourcing assistance for the farmers with the establishment of a special relief fund and other initiatives, to complement the Government's $20 million assistance programme.
RESTRICTED PROGRESS
Undoubtedly, Hurricane Ivan has restricted the progress of those relief programmes, but even while the players in the respective sectors continue to tally their losses and weigh the options for alternative sources of food, it is important that the Government moves swiftly to provide the necessary relief in order to ensure that farmers restore their production as soon as possible.
At the same time Mr. Clarke is reminding that funds are limited. "We are not awash with resources and therefore whatever recommendations we make must be tempered by the fact that we do not have the kind of resources that we need," he said.
One waits to see just how much money will be made available for rebuilding the sector, but it is advisable that it be made a priority as imported produce will increase if the island is unable to feed itself.
At the same time commercial banks should use this opportunity to build Jamaica by providing loans for farmers at reduced interest rates. The People's Co-operative Bank which obtains funds from the Development Bank of Jamaica to be disbursed in farm loans has begun re-scheduling the payment of loans owed by farmers, while the DBJ itself has indicated that it will re-schedule the payment of loans for its agriculture customers on a individual basis.
Meanwhile, the PC Bank says the DBJ must be more expeditious in processing its requests for agricultural loans to ensure that they are delivered to the farmers on a timely basis.
Randol Reid, a development officer with responsibility for credit at the Mandeville-based National PC Bank, said the (DBJ) was 'very slow' in processing its requests. "Sometimes when the loans finally come through, the planting time for the crops is out of season," he said.
And while the effects of Hurricane Ivan continue to pummel the agricultural sector, the wheel of globalisation continues to spin and the wind-down to the end of preferential treatments on the world market draws closer.
LOBBYING
There are suggestions that this is a good time to lobby the European Union (EU) to maintain existing preferential treatments against the background of the vulnerability of Caribbean islands to disasters such as hurricanes, but there are no examples where the EU has been lenient to countries because of their exposure to danger, so then Jamaica should brace itself for a rough ride to recovery.
