By SCOTT ARMSTRONG

Guardian Business Editor

scott@nasguard.com

twitter.com/guardianbiz

Harvesting a $60 million slice of the domestic food market is the aim of a new venture being developed by Bahamas Ferries designed to foster the growth of Family Island farmers.

The company has been in talks with around 10 of the islands’ major food producers, particularly in Eleuthera and Andros, and is to meet with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) over its plans to create a dedicated farmers market at its site at Potter’s Cay.

As part of the initiative, food producers would be offered discounted rates to transport their goods to the site in Nassau where they could then sell their wares wholesale to retailers.

Khaalis Rolle, chief marketing officer for Bahamas Ferries, said this could put an end to thousands of dollars worth of produce going to waste and rotting away in warehouses.

He also said that it was estimated

n See Harvest on BR2

the move could help Family Island farmers capture around 25 percent of the food import market into The Bahamas, which stands at $250 million annually at present.

He told The Nassau Guardian: “It is a travesty that produce is going to waste and we think we can help bring about a better solution.

“There are farmers in the Family Islands who have invested hundreds of thousands of pounds in their ventures, but up to 60 percent of the crop can sometimes sit in warehouses because there is no demand locally.

“What we want to do is create a dedicated space at our Potter’s Cay facility for a farmers market and foster a business to business environment where they can sell their wares. It’s not a retail business, rather somewhere for retailers to come and buy direct from the Family Island farmers.”

There have been increasing calls for the country to embrace and modernize its agriculture, with organizations such as the Bahamas Hotel Association saying a quality home-grown industry could help hotels shave thousands off their food bills, promoting cost savings and protect jobs in tourism with it.

Rolle said: “There have been a number of issues which have held agriculture back, partly it has been due to the transportation cost and partly poor marketing which has not been effective in joining up supply with demand.

“We believe this is a worthwhile venture to pursue. We’ll be charging a reduced rate to farmers to ship their products. Charging full retail rate would defeat the purpose, and we’ll help with the marketing.

“Initially we’ll be focusing primarily on Eleuthera and Andros as we have done a lot of groundwork with them already on this project, but we will look at Exuma and Abaco too.

“There are two reasons why this is important - look at the food import levels into The Bahamas. That is the potential market and we estimate we could raise the domestically grown contribution to 25 percent. Secondly there is the food security question. Can we feed ourselves if we needed too?

“Also the quicker the farmers can get their products to market the better the quality and the better the response to their wares.”

One of the major partners Bahamas Ferries is in talks with is the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), which is a specialized agency of the Inter-American System, and its purpose is to encourage and support the efforts of its Member States to achieve agricultural development and well-being for rural populations.

Recently it said that developing a different strategy in The Bahamas was the first step to reduce the nation’s $250 million food import bill.

IICA’s Marikis Alvarez said that a new route had to be taken in order to minimize the spending on imports, which greatly exceeded the figure for export sales.

He said: “As the price of food increased, along with the reaction of both the public and private sector to stimulate local production [it has] resulted in more interest in agriculture.

“The aim of encouraging greater participation by individuals in the production of food is being gradually realized.” (Nassau Guardian)

By Shelton Daniel

Reverend Charlesworth Browne, the man nominated by the Opposition Antigua Labour Party to be the new deputy chairman of the Antigua & Barbuda Electoral Commission has disagreed with the suspended head, Sir Gerald Watt, that it would take considerable time for new commissioners to be readied if elections should be called.

Browne said, “I’m not going to purport that I know all that is entailed in this office, the responsibility that these guys have had and that is thrust upon me at this time.”

His name and that of educator Anthonyson King were submitted to Governor General Dame Louise Lake-Tack by Opposition Leader Lester Bird in a letter dated July 17.

The nominee continued, “I do believe that if they have done their work and they have done it well, any person who is conscientious can go to the office, take up their work and take some disciplined quality time, study these files, the laws relating to the whole electoral process, registration and as much as possible come up to speed.”

Reverend Browne, who serves as the overseer of Ministries Centre, is a part-time Philosophy tutor at the UWI School of Continuing Studies.

On Friday, Sir Gerald Watt, Nathaniel ‘Paddy’ James and Lionel ‘Max’ Hurst were notified by letter that their services would be put on hold with effect from yesterday.

Electoral Commissioners must be seen as not being partisan and it was put to Browne that it might be difficult for him not to be viewed in this light given his participation in opposition demonstrations against the government.

He responded, “I do not consider myself to be partisan; I am concerned for the country and most often I am not a person to get involved in, let’s say, a demonstration. But if I do get involved I do so for my family. I have two sons that I believe in making a better future for.”

Browne told The Daily OBSERVER he sees his appointment as temporary and that the outcome of the tribunal will decide whether he and his colleague are there for the long haul.

“I am making assumption about temporary nature, in that two of the commissioners have been suspended, not dismissed. A man is innocent until proven guilty. So for me to behave or give any hint that I am on this Commission to stay, is to collude with some sort of a guilt on their part,” he contended.

The ALP leader made it clear that while he has complied with the Governor General’s request for the nominations, he has done so grudgingly.

In his three-page letter, Bird left his actual statement of the nominations almost for last.

The Opposition Leader used the greater part of his missive to tell the governor general why he thought her actions were wrong in suspending the three electoral commissioners who are being investigated by a tribunal to determine whether their conduct or performance warrants removal from the five-member body.

Among the three are Bird’s two nominees, the Commission’s Deputy Chairman Nathaniel “Paddy” James and Lionel Max Hurst.

Before explicitly naming the two ALP representatives who will hold on for them, Bird used the opportunity to let the governor general know that he felt she was misapplying the powers granted to her in the current ABEC saga by the Representation of the People Act.

While being careful to maintain a respectful tone, the Leader of the Opposition did not shy away from accusing Dame Louise of failing to consult with him before deciding to suspend the commissioners under investigation and initiating the process to appoint temporary replacements in their stead.

According to Bird, such consultations are clearly spelt out within the Representation of the People Act, which he copiously quoted to support his view.

Stressing that he was doing so only under strong protest, the Leader of the Opposition nominated Reverend Browne as the stand-in deputy chairman in place of James, and King as the member to hold on for Max Hurst.

Meanwhile, there has been no word from Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer about his choice to replace ABEC chairman Sir Gerald Watt.  Up to press time yesterday, the Prime Minister was reported to be off-island and due back today.

Spencer is also expected (and required) to name a full-term replacement for ex-commissioner Agnes Blaize, who resigned from ABEC about three months ago. (Antigua Observer)

Bouterse

PARAMARIBO, Suriname (AP):

Former dictator Desi Bouterse was elected president by Suriname’s Parliament Monday, following weeks of jostling by opponents who sought to stop a convicted drug trafficker and ex-strongman accused of killing political opponents from returning to power.

His eyes brimming with tears, Bouterse thanked supporters outside Parliament after he secured 36 votes in support of his presidency, thanks to a small party’s decision to back him in exchange for three Cabinet positions.

“I reach out my hand to everyone who feels that they are adversaries and ask them to leave the past behind so we can build this country together,” Bouterse told the cheering, flag-waving crowd.

Suriname’s president is not chosen directly by voters, but by legislators. A two-thirds majority in the 51-seat parliament is required to elect the president of Suriname, a CARICOM member state in South America.

Bouterse’s Mega Combination faction won 23 seats in May elections.

Some Surinamese who did not support the former military dictator’s return to power said Bouterse will at least have the benefit of experience.

“Bouterse destroyed much in the past, so maybe it is right that he gets the chance to redeem himself and help build this country,” said Rachel Bruinhart, 24.

Others watched in dismay as Bouterse’s supporters celebrated.

Michael Charles, a government employee, was baffled by the ex-dictator’s election and expressed concern over the country’s future.

“We have gone totally mad in this country. I don’t know how we managed to get Bouterse as our president,” Charles said, shaking his head in disbelief.

Bouterse is facing a long-delayed trial in Suriname for his role in the slaying of 15 political opponents during his regime in 1982. (Jamaica Gleaner)

MILWAUKEE (AP):

For the first time, a vaginal gel has proved capable of blocking the AIDS virus: It cut in half a woman’s chances of getting HIV from an infected partner in a study in South Africa. Scientists called it a breakthrough in the long quest for a tool to help women whose partners will not use condoms.

The results need to be confirmed in another study, and that level of protection is probably not enough to win approval of the microbicide gel in countries like the United States, researchers say. But they are optimistic it can be improved.

“We are giving hope to women,” who account for most new HIV infections, said Michel Sidibe in a statement. He is executive director of the World Health Organisation’s UNAIDS programme. A gel could “help us break the trajectory of the AIDS epidemic,” he said.

And Dr Anthony Fauci of the United States National Institutes of Health said, “It’s the first time we’ve ever seen any microbicide give a positive result” that scientists agree is true evidence of protection.

The gel, spiked with the AIDS drug tenofovir, cut the risk of HIV infection by 50 per cent after one year of use and 39 per cent after two and a half years, compared to a gel that contained no medicine.

To be licensed in the US, a gel or cream to prevent HIV infection may need to be at least 80 per cent effective, Fauci said. That might be achieved by adding more tenofovir or getting women to use it more consistently. In the study, women used the gel only 60 per cent of the time; those who used it more often had higher rates of protection.

The gel also cut in half the chances of getting HSV-2, the herpes virus that causes genital warts. That is important because other sexually spread diseases raise the risk of catching HIV.

By Carolyn Kissoon South Bureau

Software designed to block access to “bad” websites will be installed in the laptops promised to Secondary Entrance Assessment (SEA) pupils, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said.

Persad-Bissessar said the software firewall would prevent pupils from accessing negative websites.

She was speaking at a People’s Partnership campaign meeting in Siparia on Sunday night.

The meeting was held after politicians spent the day touring the South Western peninsular and visiting coastal villages.

Persad-Bissessar, who did not participate in most of the tour, promised to fulfil every promise made during the general election campaign.

“We have made promises to you on the campaign trail. I will do everything I can to make sure we keep that promise. The Minister of Education tells me we are well on the way to keeping it, now tonight I may say if it takes us a week or two or three, be assured that promise will be kept,” she said. Persad-Bissessar dismissed complaints that the computers would only distract the youths.

“When parents have the money, they buy the laptops for their children; they give them computers so why shouldn’t the poor parents and the poor family also have a laptop?” she asked.

Persad-Bissessar said she would work with the Ministry of Education to ensure that firewalls were installed in every computer to prevent the pupils from assessing “bad sites”.

She admitted that the cost of installing the software in all computers was high, but Persad-Bissessar said she was committed to providing the pupils with the technology.

“That’s a promise that we will keep, even if it takes us at least two three weeks in September, they will get those laptops”.

Education Minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh said last week that it would cost government $45 million to purchase laptop computers and more money was needed to install the software. (Trinidad Express)