NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (August 25, 2022) — In its ongoing thrust to ensure food security, the Ministry of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA) is seeking to establish a broiler industry on Nevis through the Department of Agriculture, targeting women and girls.

The announcement came from Hon. Alexis Jeffers, Minister of Agriculture, while he delivered remarks at the Opening Ceremony of a historic three-day Agri-preneur Conference on August 23, 2022. The conference which was held at the GMBC Building was hosted by the Department of Gender Affairs in collaboration with his ministry, aimed at empowering participants to become business persons in the agriculture industry.

“We are seeking to establish a broiler industry here on the island of Nevis and we have taken steps towards ensuring that we are putting policies in place so as to ensure that this particular industry can develop. What do I mean by that? We are in the process of securing 61 acres of land in Webbe’s Estate…

“We are going to make these lands available to women, girls, citizens and we’ll provide the necessary concessions that are available to establish your business. What do I mean by that? Within the first five years of establishing your business you will get concession on the feed, equipment, machinery, a vehicle and of course we’ll seek to ensure that the taxes associated with running your business are eliminated or you won’t have to bear those burdens for the first five years,” he said.

Mr. Jeffers noted that the process would be made easy for women and girls to participate in the project.

“We’re trying to make it easy, very easy for women and girls and citizens to get involved in that industry, and why I say that is because…on a daily basis, monthly basis, an annual basis, millions of dollars’ worth of chicken comes into the Federation.

“It is one of those meat products that all of us eat on a daily basis… but it’s a product that’s in demand and of course whether there’s a pandemic in the future; whether there are challenges with transport to Nevis, once we are producing here, we will be able to eat chicken every day once we are producing it. We would not be affected by outside forces…

“So that’s something to look forward to, and that is something that we’re working on from the Ministry and Department of Agriculture along with the entire Nevis Island Administration,” he said.

Mr. Jeffers told the participants at the conference that there is hope on the horizon and offered advice to them citing that although the conference targets women and girls it would benefit others through them.

“It is geared towards everyone because your success as a woman in business will not necessarily be because of your gender but it would be as a result of pursuing something that you love, putting in the time, putting in the effort, making the investment and making it grow, and making yourself proud and your family proud,” he said.