Bureaucracy choking agri-investments across the Caribbean, says Holness

CORAL SPRING, Trelawny — Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness has urged regional governments to cut bureaucratic red tape which he says is slowing agricultural investment. According to Holness, cumbersome regulations are undermining efforts to modernise the agricultural sector and improve its competitiveness. Addressing the opening ceremony of Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA) at the Ocean Coral Spring Hotel in Trelawny on Sunday night, Holness said regional governments must become more responsive to investors seeking to introduce technology, controlled production systems, and modern equipment, particularly when such investments are capable of increasing agricultural output and efficiency.

“My protest is not that we must not regulate. My protest is that we must be speedier, faster, more strategic in how we regulate,” Holness told delegates. He said investors could face delays as they navigate regulations governing the importation of seeds, livestock and equipment, at a time when agricultural enterprises need to move quickly.

“I’m certain, as I’m speaking for Jamaica... by virtue of the nods that I’m seeing all around the room, that this is a common challenge across the region,” added Holness. He argued that the regulatory problem must be addressed alongside other measures aimed at raising productivity and lowering the cost of doing business.

“The long-term competitiveness of our agricultural sector will depend increasingly on productivity,” said Holness as he charged that the region must generate greater yields, increase output per worker, use water and energy more efficiently, reduce post-harvest losses, and secure better returns on investment. The prime minister said regional governments could help achieve this through sustained spending on irrigation, mechanisation, research, technology, extension services, and infrastructure connecting farms with markets. But he underscored that public investment alone will not be enough to transform the agricultural sector.

Holness called for a significant expansion of private-sector investment in agriculture, saying the region needs commercially viable projects capable of attracting long-term capital and creating stronger relationships among farmers, processors, distributors, and retailers. The prime minister also urged regional governments to work with private investors to establish long-term supply contracts that woul…