In Aug 2018 Edition of Cultural Xpression, We’ll focus a bit more on the solutions. As everyone knows that The St. Maarten Agricultural Research and Development Center is scheduled for demolition on September 6, 2018. One year directly after the passing of hurricane Irma. With many of the struggles and challenges that Wyatte currently faces, It’s not really difficult to find a reasonable solution that would bring peace to a struggling community and its members.
In this edition of Cultural Xpression, Wyatt explains a bit more to the general public about the national recovery and resilience plan and how having an agricultural research and development center can actually complement the NRRP.
”The mission is to find a viable solution, over a situation that can actually easily be handled with a shake of hands and the stroke of a pen. We just have to find a common ground, where we can look at the overall prospective as to what is most beneficial for country St. Maarten” Wyatte
The national recovery and resilient plan brings hope to community recovery and resilience, and to those that have been drastically displaced after the passing of hurricane Irma.
Having an agricultural research and development center can complement every component of the NRRP.
This upcoming month the focus is to express a bit more on one component which is ‘’ Community Recovery and Resilience’’ and express a bit more on a BBB St Maarten and how agriculture may play a great role by adding value and sustainability to this component. Resilience to food insecurity.
These important topics have been discussed with Mr. Kamina, the UNDP Livelihoods and Economic Recovery Adviser who has flown to SXM (Jan-April 2018) to assess the lost on Livelihoods and to Propose a UNDP three phases Framework for Livelihood Recovery Program for St Maarten.
As summary of his findings he proposed a Framework with Four pillars to contribute to SXM Gov for Irma Recovery. The first pillar proposed by this expert is related to Capacity building and Agricultural Improvement (ref Mr Kamina Ntenda, Livelihoods & Economic Recovery Adviser, CRU IC_UNDP_CRU_2018_02 )
Livelihoods Diversification and Economic Recovery programme; Track 2 commencing July, 2018 and concluding July, 2020, using the identified UNDP Livelihood Diversification/ Recovery (UNDP TT SXM). A 4 Pillar Focus.
A Full report can been requested at SXM TT UNDP
After leaving St Maarten at the end of his mission with UNDP, Mr. Kamina kept contact with our center and other stakeholders through his Consulting firm Regional Solutions (www.regionalsolutions.org) to develop the proposals for the Improvement of our Agricultural Research Center; setting up of districts community gardening training on back yard home gardens, auto-pots making systems, recycling of bio degradable waste into compost ( organic farming) and resource mobilization.
The targets groups identified during the employment driver organized by Labor Department with support of UNDP include Irma affected peoples, Unemployed and vulnerable groups.
‘’I am one of the Vulnerable groups and I have been able to get out from this group because of my earliest involvement in Agricultural Activities.’’ Wyatte expressed
We would like the general public to take sometime and read through August 2018’s Edition of Cultural Xpression to get a better understanding of why it is necessary and important for St. Maarten to implement an agricultural research and development center towards a Building Back a Better (BBB) Recovering and Resilient St. Maarten.
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE AUG 2018 EDITION
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