RADA

8 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 10, ISSUE 2 RURAL AGR I CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AUTHOR I TY Business View Magazine: You mentioned that the agricultural sector grew by 17% after the COVID pandemic. Are the other ways RADA has contributed to this growth besides the ones mentioned? Winston Simpson: One strategy that paid off was targeting high- value priority crops, which are crops that would have a significant impact on our balance of trade. Our import bill was relatively high, so we targeted crops we know can reduce our importation bill. These crops include onion, Irish potato, dashi, cocoa, cassava, pineapples, yams, strawberries, and beans. To increase production, we put extra funds into the priority crops and ensured farmers had tractors and backhoes to help with land preparation. We also added water irrigation systems to our distribution network,