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DECEMBER 9th, 2004.
Mr. Augustine Vesprey, Chairman of the Board of Directors,
To all of us, I say, we can and will rebuild our homes, our lives, our sector and our country. I recognize the contributions from previous
Boards and compliment the members of the present Board for being selected to serve. You have an arduous task ahead.
It seems as though it was only yesterday that I was addressing you at the 98th General Meeting of the Association in May of this year. Indeed,
time has gone by so quickly, that it is difficult to believe that we are already at Christmas, usually considered to be a time for sober
reflection on the birth and life of our Christ. Given the state of our nutmeg industry and of our beloved country, this meeting today provides
us with an opportunity to take stock of where we are and more importantly where we need to go in redeveloping our industry. It is my hope that
having participated in this meeting, Members will use the serenity provided by the Christmas season to ponder on the road map to the
redevelopment of our industry and the strategic approaches which must be taken to nurture its constituent sub-projects and programmes. It
should be clear to us all, that this redevelopment must by dint of circumstance, create an industry more responsive, and stronger than that
which existed prior to Hurricane Ivan.
In developing the nutmeg industry, we must be mindful not to repeat those mistakes of the past. We must ensure that our strategic vision
accommodates participation by all stakeholders, including those that have demonstrated an interest in engaging in value added and by-product
diversification. We can no longer afford the disagreements of the last several years, with the Association and stakeholders publicly
disagreeing over the path to development of the industry.
We must evolve a consensus vision for where we would wish our industry to go and clearly, well-articulated steps on how we will achieve this
goal. The National Council for Reconstruction and Development could provide the Forum for so doing.
I take note of the intention of the GCNA to co-operate with farmers, Government and International Organisations and Institutions as stated in
the "Report of the Board". I would like to add for clarity, the need for cooperation with the private sector. Ladies and gentlemen we have
lost much time; indeed, it would be true to say that we have lost too much time.
I have taken note of the intention of the GCNA to look beyond the export of nutmegs as a commodity and into its pharmaceutical products,
bio-diesel, essential oils, and other properties. While I’m heartened by this as a strategic option for advancing the diversification of
the nutmeg industry, I would have much preferred to have seen evidence of this diversification in the Financial Statements for 2003-2004.
We have been talking about these things for quite sometime now. It is high time for action. It is action that will cause the industry to
grow out of its present situation.
For far too long, we have held discussions on the economic potential of the nutmeg industry. Despite all this, we have little to show for
our efforts. We must do more to realize the potentials that we know exist within the industry. We must unravel the paradox which many
commentators have noticed about our country, as with so many others, where we are so rich in resources and potential yet we continue to
under-achieve.
This Country’s reconstruction will rely on the marshalling of all our resources and the exploitation of all our untapped opportunities.
Let me concisely define the challenge which lies before us. We must replace approximately 90% of our nutmeg tree stock over the next year or
two at a cost of approximately EC $10 Million Dollars. I’m aware that this estimate lies substantially above the initial one arrived at in
the two major reports on agriculture. But if we figure replacing 500,000 nutmeg trees, with labour and logistic supports and maintenance cost,
sufficient to arrive at the pre-Ivan scenario, over the next two to six years, we easily arrive at such a figure.
We must now seize this opportunity to introduce high yielding, less storm prone varieties of nutmeg. Neither should the opportunity be lost
to involve our youth in the redevelopment programme for nutmegs and to pull together all the various facets of this industry’s redevelopment
into commercial opportunities for them.
Incorporating higher levels of technology in the nutmeg and mace production and processing must also be hall marks of our new thrust. Our
industry cannot advance in a world driven by productivity growth and technical change, by continuing with the same old mundane practices as
we had. As you are well aware, we have received from CARDI, proposals on three specific projects which we consider to be high priorities in
addressing the nutmeg wilt disease and developing more hardy varieties. The Government will ensure, with your cooperation that these projects
receive the requisite level of attention.
In addition, we will seek to ensure that in the propagation of new plant stock, for which we are receiving international support, that we
also take on board this need for new hardy, pest resistant varieties.
As is well known, the nutmeg industry plays a significant role in the rural livelihoods of our country, providing income for farmers and
their families, employment and sustenance to rural communities. Serious dislocation could result if critical industry development activities
were to be retarded. In recognition of this, the Government of Grenada, is prepared to continue working with the association in establishing
a soft loan facility for inputs. In addition to this, we will be providing a "labour subsidy" to workers on- farm, which we envisage will
support a more rapid rehabilitation and replanting of the nutmeg crop.
Presently, Government, through the Agricultural Emergency Rehabilitation Project, is providing assistance to farmers through payment for
work done on the farms and to the Commodities Boards, GCNA, GCA, MNIB and GCFL, by paying the wages and salaries of those workers who would
have otherwise been laid off because of the heavy losses realized by these Boards due to the passage of Hurricane Ivan.
The Management Committee of the AERP is made up of senior officers from GCNA, GCA, MNIB and the Ministries of Finance and Agriculture.
In my previous address to you in May, I had signalled the Government’s intention to establish along with the GCNA, a strong technical
capacity, which I termed a "Technical Institute", to assist with product development and value-added. I believe that we must together pledge
to realize this important support element in the first quarter of next year. It appears to me that a necessary first step, must see the
elaboration of a project profile from the GCNA, developed with Ministry of Agriculture’s support that we can begin refining and seeking
financing for.
I am happy to report that this has commenced with a visit from the High Commissioner of India to Grenada and further discussions between the
Commonwealth Secretariat and a joint Government of Grenada, GCNA, Produce Chemist Lab team.
We had also indicated that a grant had been approved by the CDB in the amount of US $150,000 to deal with product development using nutmeg
and mace as the raw material. With the advent of Hurricane Ivan, these resources have been reprogrammed to relief and reconstruction efforts,
but the approval is still there and so are the resources, which can be applied for at a moment’s notice. It is my intention to activate the
request for these resources as soon as we are far along enough with the plans for developing the Technical Institute.
FAO’s processing and other pilot projects, temporarily put on hold, will also be revitalized as soon as they can be accommodated.
Farmers, in our examination of the financial report of the Association, we continue to be struck by the recurrent losses being registered.
While much of what I have said before regarding the need for diversification into higher value adding activities would strengthen the revenue
element of this industry’s performance, we must also examine quite closely the areas in which institutional reform and cost-cutting measures
may be undertaken. While I do not want to pre-empt before discussions with the Board how this rationalization will evolve, it would be
encouraging if for instance the operations of all the various spice related organisations could be merged and critical functions such as
contract negotiations for marketing and promotions embarked upon together.
Clearly, the cost of ensuring that all that must be done for the industry is undertaken in the timeframe envisaged, would require major
participation from the private sector. It is my view therefore, that we need to look more towards the local and regional private sector as
partners and collaborators in this process than we have been doing in the past. With the advent of the CSME, there is every reason to expect
interest from spices and condiment companies in countries such as Jamaica, Trinidad and St. Lucia. In anticipation of this the GCNA, must set
about refreshing its inventory of project profiles, such that "would-be" investors could gain a clear appreciation for the projects and how
they come together.
In this context, and as we set about rehabilitating the nutmeg industry we should take note of the developments occurring in other parts of
the hemisphere with similar economic structures as our own country. In these service type economies, which benefit from tourism and hospitality
services and yet maintain a sizable proportions of their GDP in agriculture, eco-tourism projects are developing which offers visitors an
opportunity to observe and experience the rich diversity in flora, plant life and agricultural products which these countries have to offer.
In rehabilitating our spice capacity we too should seek to develop integrated spice farms which can also act as tourism sites in their own
right and provide farmers with some measure of off-farm income. This was also discussed with the commonwealth Secretariat.
Finally, ladies and gentlemen, we have a tremendous amount of work ahead of us in debunking the myth, that Grenada can no longer be regarded
as the "Isle of Spice." While this is an area in which the various Ministries will need to take the lead, the GCNA must work diligently with
us in assuring our international customers that while there is no doubt that we have suffered a serious set back, our production levels will
soon rebound. But having undertaken this campaign, we will all need to ensure that we can back up our claims by producing both the amounts
and quality spices required by the international markets.
Ladies and gentlemen, I wish to close by indicating that the rehabilitation of the nutmeg industry will depend on you. It should be evident
that the amount of international assistance pledged to us, falls far short of the amount required to redevelop the sector, in the way that we
would all desire. It was Grenadian capital which developed the industry to begin with and it is Grenadian capital, human and financial, that
will drive it resurgence. This is a time for work, this a time for action. This is a time for us all to join together in finally realizing the
industry’s true economic and social potential.
Therefore, as we look ahead to the Christmas Season, I ask that you keep the bright vision of a thriving sector always ahead of you, a vision
of young men and women taking pride in their diversified work and respected by their professional peers.
Let God’s grace and this vision ensure for us a happy Christmas and a fruitful and productive New Year.
I Thank You.
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