Agriculture Minister, Dr Christopher, Tufton leaves the island for Guyana today to participate in the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) for Georgetown, Guyana, tomorrow.

The meeting, which will be chaired by Tufton, will focus on several issues affecting the development of agriculture and fisheries in the region, including the rising cost of living, food security and safety legislation.

He is being accompanied by the ministry's director of planning policy and development, Zuleikha Budhan.

Centre to be discussed

Tufton noted that the US$3 million (J$210 million) Centre for Excellence to be located in Jamaica, which was funded by the Spanish Agency for International Development, is to be finalised at the meeting.

The meeting will also discuss trade in agricultural products with Costa Rica, as well as the imple-mentation of the proposed Economic Partnership Agreement for agriculture.

The agriculture minister returns to Jamaica on May 22.