St. Maarten looks to Nevis’ agriculture industry for best practices, possible trade link

in NIA

Deputy Premier and Minister of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration the Honourable Eric Evelyn (l) welcomes Sint Maarten Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Grisha Heyliger-Marten and her delegation to Nevis

 

NIA CHARLESTOWN NEVIS (July 19, 2024)- Sint Maarten’s Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs the Honourable Grisha Heyliger-Marten says not only can the Dutch territory learn from Nevis’ agriculture model, the possibility exists for the two islands to forge trade links.

The idea of inter-island collaboration was well received by Deputy Premier and Minister of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration (NIA), the Honourable Eric Evelyn. He led the Honourable Heyliger-Marten and her delegation on a tour to various agricultural stations during a recent visit to Nevis.

“We are always happy to welcome persons from the neighboring islands to come to see what we are doing and to see what they can take away. The Minister has been talking about more trade between Sint Maarten and the Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis; that is something that we would also welcome.

(2nd from right) Deputy Premier and Minister of Agriculture in the Nevis Island Administration the Honourable Eric Evelyn with Sint Maarten Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs Grisha Heyliger-Marten (3rd from right); Government of St. Kitts and Nevis Minister of Agriculture the Honourable Samal Duggins (4th from right); members of the Sint Maarten delegation and officials from the Nevis Department of Agriculture

“I was speaking to some of the delegation and I was impressed that they told me that it was inspirational what they saw on the island of Nevis. They said it’s inspirational and they were very impressed, and that is heartening for us on the island of Nevis because we’ve been doing quite a bit where agriculture is concerned.”

Minister Heyliger-Marten said agriculture on Sint Maarten is very, minute and the territory is looking to build that sector and also exploring the possibility of sourcing certain produce from Nevis.

“So what I’m doing here in Nevis is a fact-finding mission with a delegation of five. We’re here to learn about agriculture, to maybe collaborate, and maybe even trade. It’s been, I must say, a very fruitful visit. We visited A1 Farms, Nevis Hydro Farms and Indian Castle and we have learned a lot. I mean the amount of things you can do in Nevis, it’s amazing.

“We’re looking forward to maybe partner with Nevis, with St. Kitts, to maybe do a trade mission. This is a trade between what you have here, what we can buy from you.”

The Sint Maarten delegation also visited agriculture installations on St. Kitts during their trip to the Federation.

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