We did well! Tufton says team effort contributed to strides in agri sector

Christopher Serju, Sunday Gleaner Writer

Dr Christopher Charles Tufton, who on Wednesday took office as minister of industry, investment and commerce, says he enjoyed his four-year tenure as minister of agriculture and fisheries, where he earned a reputation as a hard worker and a man committed to Jamaican farmers.

Speaking with The Sunday Gleaner after touring a farmers' market at Hope Gardens, just hours before surrendering that portfolio, the member of parliament for South West St Elizabeth was emphatic that team effort was a critical component of the agriculture ministry's success.

"I am happy with the extent to which the team in the ministry - from the permanent secretary to the lowest-level worker - sort of gelled around a critical vision to build the sector. I think that represented a major success factor," he said.

Expansion of the services offered by the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), which saw the number of extension officers doubled, and the technology-driven approach to gathering and disseminating information on time to various stakeholders, especially small farmers, are things of which he is particularly proud.

"It's not perfect, but it's a lot better than it was, and continues to expand and do better. The addition of the animal health technicians and the livestock officers, again as part of the extension services, has been a good thing for livestock farmers."

Tufton has no illusions, however, that all is well with agriculture. There is still much more to be done, he concedes.

"We still have issues, but we've shown improvement. We've used technology like the toll-free 1-888 number, text messaging to reach out to farmers, whether giving them information on pest management, weather conditions, or market opportunities. The extension kits that they are using now, which allow them to do more technical work in the field, GPS technology, all of those I think makes RADA a more professional agency. That, to me, is a milestone."

The expansion of greenhouse production, which has resulted in self-sufficiency in bell (sweet) peppers, is another achievement of worth, as well as the improvements in the infrastructure of fishing beaches across Jamaica are areas in which the former agriculture minister thinks he has scored well. With legislation still pending, which will bring outstanding aspects of the fishing industry in line with realities of the 21st century, there is still much to celebrate.

"Thirty fishing beaches have benefited over the past number of years from sanitary conveniences or gear sheds, vending areas, all over the country, and I think fishers are better for it because these things have enhanced their livelihood," he said.

tortuous process

The divestment of the sugar factories has evolved into a somewhat tortuous process, with a number of areas still unresolved, but Tufton still sees a silver lining.

"It has been a big issue for us," he admitted. "We are not there yet, but three years ago, we were subsidising the industry to the tune of billions of dollars. In the last year, we haven't fallen into that situation, and even if we have to subsidise a bit, it won't be anywhere near close to what we did before," he explained.

The pending divestment of Wallenford and Mavis Bank coffee factories and subsequent diversification of the market for the Jamaican beans, more than 90 per cent of which traditionally was sold to Japan, has been a wake-up call for the sector. Reeling from the global recession, Japanese processors, in addition to cutting their sale volume by 50 per cent, discontinued forward-buying of the premier Blue Mountain coffee. Tufton is convinced that once the teething pains are over, coffee will bounce back.

"We have just advertised Wallenford, and Mavis Bank is in the final stages of negotiation working with DBJ.

"I myself went to China, and we are now in the Chinese market, so I think that the industry, even though the farmers are feeling it now because this year has been bad for them because of the fall-off in the Japanese market, over time, with the new entrants, you will see that industry doing well."

This will mean a significant about-face for the local coffee industry, which had seen government controlling some 70 per cent of local beans, a system which, according to the former agriculture minister, "was just not driving the sector and creating the initiatives and the market diversification which was necessary".

The cocoa industry is earmarked for divestment as well, which will go hand in hand with the government's plan to revolutionise the sector by wresting power from commodity boards, some of which have held sway since the 1940s.

"We are going to be dismantling some of them, merging some of them. I'm being succeeded by someone who is qualified and competent to take the baton and to build on what the team at the ministry has achieved," Tufton said in endorsing his successor, Robert Montague.