New program to strengthen Caribbean food security

The Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) has reaffirmed its “deep commitment” to food and nutrition security in the region with the launch of the call for proposals for the European Union-CDB Regional Food Security Program.

O’Reilly Lewis, the CDB’s acting director of projects, spoke at the initiative’s launch, which is part of the Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) concluding later today in St. Vincent. He emphasized that food and nutrition security are crucial pillars for the agricultural sector and essential for the health and well-being of communities, particularly the most vulnerable.

“The Caribbean Development Bank is deeply committed to this objective, and we are excited to continue collaborating with our private sector, development, and finance partners to promote sustainable economic growth through food security,” Lewis stated.

In response to the global food crisis, the EU mobilized EUR 600 million (approximately US$1.29 per Euro) in July 2022 to enhance food security and develop sustainable, resilient food systems across African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries, with EUR 36.5 million specifically allocated for the Caribbean.

The EU-Caribbean Regional Food Security Program, which ends in 2027, aims to enhance food system resilience, focusing on improving the livelihoods and food security of vulnerable populations.

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The program will invest EUR 19 million, implemented through key regional partners namely the CDB, International Trade Centre, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, and EU member state agencies (FIIAPP and CPVA).

The program’s general objective is to enhance the sustainability and resilience of food systems in the Caribbean, promoting food and nutrition security, particularly for vulnerable groups.

Specific goals include improving food production systems with a focus on gender sensitivity, enhancing food processing and distribution, expanding social protection systems for agricultural actors, and ensuring equitable access to nutritious diets across the region.

The CDB says it has been actively working with regional and international agencies to assist with the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) 25 by 2025 initiative which seeks to reduce the region’s rising food import bill, improve intra-regional trade, and create wealth and economic opportunities for the 15-member grouping.

The recent pandemic and climatic events have impacted agricultural productivity with the passage of Hurricane Beryl in July contributing to deepening social inequalities with Grenada, Jamaica and St Vincent and the Grenadines suffering massive losses.

In St Vincent and the Grenadines, the banana and plantain industries suffered losses of up to 98 per cent, while Jamaica’s agriculture sector incurred US$15.9 million in damages, affecting over 45,000 farmers.

Grenada saw 98 per cent of its infrastructure on the islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique destroyed. These events have slowed progress towards the regional shared goal of reducing food imports by 25 per cent by 2025.

The new food security program will, through a series of projects ranging between EURO 400,00 – 570,000 for national projects and up to 670,000 will support agri-MSMEs and producers by providing access to finance, fostering innovation, and improving distribution systems to enhance competitiveness and resilience.

The Team Leader Regional Cooperation and Trade Support at the EU Delegation to Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean, Felipe de La Mota says the project forms part of a larger envelope of funds to augment regional efforts by CARICOM and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) to clear bottlenecks related to food security.

The EU’s global gateway has allocated EUR 19 million to the Caribbean for food production and resilience initiatives.

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