SUNDAY 5 MAY 2019 – UWI TODAY
3
Once upon a time, for a very long time,
human
civilisation centred on agriculture. It is estimated
that the first farmers began planting grains more
than 11,000 years ago. In doing so they were seeding
a massive transformation in how people live.
Farming led to a surplus in food, which in turn led
to population growth, a diversity of roles and social
development. Civilizations bloomed.
Yet even as humanity advanced, food production
remained at the centre of almost every society. It
was the major employer. It was the main source of
wealth. Agricultural goods were the most important
commodities and raw materials for finished goods.
The farm was the platform for ingenuity and
invention. Most importantly, and fundamentally, it
ensured the society was food secure.
One of the consequences of industrial
development and international trade is the tendency
to take food for granted. Developed and emerging
economies have supermarket shelves, stores, shops
and restaurants bursting with food. We believe
that because we have so much food, we are food
secure. This is not always true. Food production is
what ensures food security. Without agriculture our
capacity to feed our society is extremely tenuous.
And unfortunately, as societies develop, in many
cases that crucial connection to the land withers.
Trinidad and Tobago has followed a similar
trajectory. We were once an agricultural society with
an abundance of small and family farms providing
foods such as corn, rice, peas, beans and potatoes to
feed the home market, and large-scale plantations
producing sugar, cocoa and coffee. But we became
an independent republic guided by an agenda of
industrial development fueled by the energy sector.
And it worked. Today the energy sector contributes
almost 48 per cent of GDP (2017). But what of
agriculture? Various reports show that in 2017 it
contributed between 0.5 per cent and 0.4 per cent to
GDP and employs an estimated four per cent of the
population. Agriculture is not what it used to be.
“The contribution of agriculture to GDP in
almost every CARICOM country has declined and
continues to decline relatively, and there is a similar
trend in the budget allocation to the agricultural
sector in most of these countries,” said Mr Reuben
Robertson, Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO) Representative for T&T and Suriname at a
recent event.
In that same gathering, Mr Robertson stated
that, “our countries and region are faced with
severe challenges to the extent where our region is
a net importer of food, estimated at US$4.7 billion
annually, making the region food insecure.”
The “gathering” was
techAGRI Expo 2019
, the
signature event of UWI St Augustine’s Faculty
of Food and Agriculture (FFA). In its third year,
techAGRI has become the Caribbean’s premier
agricultural exhibition, exposing visitors to the
creativity, commercial potential, future tools and
splendid products originating on campus and in
FROM THE PRINCIPAL
PROFESSOR BRIAN COPELAND
Campus Principal
FarmingMatters
and technology. Among them may very well be
a future generation of farmers and agricultural
entrepreneurs.
TechAGRI
is only one of themany initiatives from
the FFA. In December 2018 the faculty launched its
Technology Demonstration Park just outside the
campus grounds. The park, built by our graduate
students, displays climate smart technologies and
hydroponic systems - tools to improve the viability of
farming and agriculture-based commercial activity.
And the FFA remains a regional leader in
research, teaching and ideas. In this issue of
UWI
Today
we tell the story of Dr Rajendra Persaud, one
of our PhD students, whose research into sustainable
management strategies for diseases affecting rice led
to him receiving the “Golden Arrow of Achievement”
a national award from the Republic of Guyana. This
is the kind of high value, impactful research of which
the FFA and the entire university should be proud.
It is highly unlikely that we will ever return to
an agrarian age, where food production dominates
our societies. But we can inspire a rejuvenation of
agriculture. We must. There are several examples
of nations suffering the consequences of food
insecurity, some close to home. A country insecure
in its food supply is a country at risk of a national
emergency. The danger is that great.
At The UWI we understand the stakes. We are
doing the work. But we cannot do it alone. National
and regional issues require a national and regional
response. We therefore look forward to engaging
with the wider society. I believe that working together
we can not only feed our citizens for generations but
also establish a vibrant and prosperous industry
based on agriculture.
society. It represents the outstanding work of Dr
Wayne Ganpat, Dean of FFA and his entire team
of faculty members, support staff and the students
themselves. Even teams from other faculties played
an important part at
techAGRI
, which is fitting
because food security is a society-wide concern and
every discipline has a role in its realisation.
In his opening address at the expo, Dr Ganpat
explained its three objectives:
“To draw national attention to food and food
production as an attractive, technology driven
profession… to expose all the varied opportunities
that exist in food beyond primary production, the
wide range of exciting value-added products… and
thirdly to draw national attenion to the work that
The UWI is doing as we contribute to agriculture in
the region.”
All three objectives were achieved beyond
expectation. I have attended every
techAGRI
and
every year I marvel at the work that is being done by
the scholars, business people, technologists, sector
specific organisations and government agencies in
food production. I am impressed by the multitude
of creative and colourful products that have been
developed in T&T and the region. I am heartened by
the excitement of the school children as their world
is opened up to the wonders of agricultural research
EDITORIAL TEAM
CAMPUS PRINCIPAL
Professor Brian Copeland
AG. DIRECTOR OF MARKETING
AND COMMUNICATIONS
Wynell Gregorio
AG. EDITOR
Joel Henry
email:
CONTACT US
The UWI Marketing and
Communications Office
Tel: (868) 662-2002, exts. 82013 / 83997
or email:
But what of agriculture?
Various reports show that in 2017
it contributed between 0.5 per
cent and 0.4 per cent to GDP and
employs an estimated four per cent
of the population. Agriculture is
not what it used to be.
