Ministry Suspends Registration for Seeds and Seedlings for Backyard Gardening

Barbara 15th May, 2020

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The Ministry of Agriculture has suspended the application for seeds and seedlings for backyard gardening across Dominica. Ministry officials said 2,774 applicants already registered to have the seeds and seedlings, and that it is necessary to attend to this category of applicants first before attending to others. The ministry said there is overwhelming number of registrants and this could overwhelm the resources the government has.

Coordinator of the Disaster Risk Management Project in the Division of Agriculture, Dr. Almario Casimir, said the distribution of seeds and seedlings to farmers and farming enthusiasts is part of government’s efforts to kickstart the Coronavirus Food Security Programme which aims to ensure food security for all residents in the country.

The programme initially started with large-scale farmers, but it was extended to families and backyard farmers when COVID-19 hit the island. Farming packages such as seedling trays and gardening tools as well as leafy vegetables like kale and lettuce, vitamin rich plants like tomatoes and cucumbers, starchy vegetables like corn and carrots as well as protein-rich beans and peas were given to participants.

Agricultural officials said that with various crops given to participants, Dominican families can be certain to eat balanced and nutritious meals at all times. This is why the seedlings packages are diverse with plants rich in vitamins, minerals, starch and protein. Casimir said the ministry had to suspend applications so that what is on ground would be enough for registrants while more are sourced for the others.

“We have not gone past the 2,774 participants,” Casimir said. “One of the reasons for the temporary closure of the programme is that the requests were coming in and the demand on the agricultural stations for production of seedlings was tremendous. The central objective is to target vulnerable groups and single-headed households.”

Meanwhile, nine care homes have received various farming packages from the ministry to facilitate subsistence agriculture. Officials said the government has spent EC$162,000 to procure seeds and seedlings as well as planting materials for farmers islandwide.