• Latest
Grenada Cooperative Nutmeg Association and Grenada Cocoa Association statement

Prime Minister affirms proposed merger intended to empower farmers

7 months ago
Amanda Seales receives Caribbean Luminary Award

Amanda Seales receives Caribbean Luminary Award

1 hour ago
Government boosts Coast Guard capacity to patrol country’s northern border

Government boosts Coast Guard capacity to patrol country’s northern border

16 hours ago
Covid-19 update by Minister for Health

Nightly curfew remains in place

16 hours ago
Reach Within supports teens as they grow into young adulthood

Reach Within supports teens as they grow into young adulthood

18 hours ago
US Gives Additional Support to Dominica

US Embassy cancels all non-immigrant visa appointments

20 hours ago
Nightly curfew remains in place but will begin at 10 pm

Curfew to remain for at least 2 more weeks

21 hours ago
Fewer than 400 marriages registered in 2020

Fewer than 400 marriages registered in 2020

2 days ago
Randy Isaac arrested and charged for domestic violence

Randy Isaac arrested and charged for domestic violence

2 days ago
Response to PM’s National Address

Statement of solidarity with teachers and public workers

2 days ago
Claims of coronavirus at SGU designed to create fear and panic

Covid-19 update: Grenada Dashboard 23 January

3 days ago
Grand Etang route disruption

Grand Etang route disruption

3 days ago
Early Intervention is the best hope for reducing child abuse

A crisis of sexual assault and rape among people in Grenada

4 days ago
NOW Grenada

Main Header Ad 468x60

booked.net
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
NOW Grenada
No Result
View All Result

Article Header

Prime Minister affirms proposed merger intended to empower farmers

This story was posted 7 months ago
1 July 2020
in Agriculture/Fisheries, Business, PRESS RELEASE
3 min. read
Share

The Government of Grenada has no interest in managing the affairs of the Grenada Cocoa Association (GCA) or the Grenada Cooperative Nutmeg Association (GCNA).

Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, Dr the Right Honourable Keith Mitchell, said government’s interest is in ensuring that the associations operate more efficiently by merging operations and that farmers are given an opportunity to derive more benefits from their investment.

In his address to the nation on Sunday night, the Prime Minister said the merger of the 2 commodity boards is a longstanding recommendation and the Covid-19 pandemic has illustrated that it cannot be business as usual.

He said, “We must move speedily but with precision, to address the governance and management structure of the commodity boards, which successive consultancies have shown to be inadequate and archaic. It is said that in every crisis there are opportunities; this pandemic has provided a crucial opportunity to modernise the operation of our commodity boards, to strengthen the institutional capacity and viability of the governance structure, liberalise the market and improve the global competitiveness of our traditional crops.”

Dr Mitchell expects the proposed merger to bring greater financial returns to farmers as they will be at the forefront in managing their affairs. He said, “We expect the merger of the associations and liberalisation of the sector to lead to better prices for cocoa and nutmeg farmers while also allowing them a chance of real ownership and shareholding in the commodity board. As it is now, farmers do not own shares in the Grenada Cocoa Association or the Grenada Cooperative Nutmeg Association. Government has no intention to take over the affairs of the associations but rather, we seek to empower the country’s cocoa and nutmeg farmers and to improve their financial returns.”

Both associations recently requested financial support from the government. In agreeing to provide price support payments for farmers as it has done on several previous occasions, government specifically required that the merger takes place to create greater efficiency in the overall management structure. Government has been criticised by some for trying to hijack the process but the Prime Minister gave assurances this is not the case.

He said, “As in numerous instances before, the situation highlights the need for urgent action to address the long-term financial viability of the cocoa and nutmeg associations and their ability to safeguard the livelihood of farmers. Therein lies the rationale for the proposed merger which is a recommendation dating as far back as the 1990s. Unfortunately, years of inaction have paralysed the associations, leading to chronic and acute financial challenges, similar to the current situation which necessitated yet another injection of capital by government, to ensure the survival of the associations.”

Prior to the current moves towards merging the cocoa and nutmeg associations, the most recent attempt to pursue this was in 2017 when a committee, led by the current GCNA Chairman was formed to examine the pros and cons of the merger. In a 6 page report, that committee cited many similarities such as farmer base, organisational structure, assets, liabilities and budgetary constraints. Further, this report recommended that government play an active role in the merger and that farmers must be at the forefront.

To date, government has initiated draft legislation that will guide the merger but this draft has not yet been reviewed by Cabinet.

Office of the Prime Minister

NOW Grenada is not responsible for the opinions, statements or media content presented by contributors. In case of abuse, click here to report.

Tags: farmersgcagcnagrenada cocoa associationgrenada cooperative nutmeg associationmerger
Next Post
LIAT to suspend passenger services

Prime Minister to meet with LIAT workers to discuss concerns

Comment on story Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Home Sidebar NP 300x250

© NOW Grenada. All Rights Reserved. Published by Aqua Design Inc. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

© NOW Grenada. All Rights Reserved
Published by Aqua Design Inc.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy

No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Categories
    • General News
      • All
      • Agriculture & Fisheries
      • Arts & Culture
      • Business
      • Education
      • Environment
      • Health
      • History
      • Lifestyle
      • Law
      • Politics
      • Technology
      • Travel & Tourism
      • Weather
      • Youth
    • Sports
      • All
      • Athletics
      • Cricket
      • Football
      • Watersports
    • Community
      • All
      • Tribute
    • Crime
    • Features
      • All
      • Today in History
    • Opinion/Commentary
    • Press Releases
      • All
      • Advertisements
      • Notices
  • Video
  • Notices & Vacancies
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings. Visit our Privacy Policy | Terms of Use.

NOW Grenada
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. Visit our Privacy Policy | Terms of Use.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.