ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC – Dominica Friday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Cuba that the authorities here said will help the island strengthen its food security capacity.

“What we are witnessing this morning is the signing of a memorandum of understanding that would see increased efforts in the areas of greenhouse technology, citrus production, horticulture, but more importantly we will be building the capacity of our own staff…in terms of knowledge transfer from the Cubans…to our local,” Agriculture Minister Fidel Grant said.

He said the Roosevelt Skerrit government has articulated a vision for increasing the gross domestic product (GDP) of agriculture to EC$700 million (One EC dollar=US$.0 37 cents) earlier this year and that the MOU will contribute “significantly to reaching this target”

He said one of the areas to benefit from the agreement will be citrus propagation and that the Cuban specialists are due here “very shortly.

“This will go a long way in developing our export of food to the Caribbean, but more importantly as we have seen with the world crisis following COVID-19 and currently the Ukraine/Russia war, our food security has become a priority for many governments and this government as well.

“So this agreement we are signing here is not only to assist in the development of the citrus industry…but importantly to strengthen our food security efforts,” Grant said.