Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Rural Transformation, Hon. Israel Bruce, has highlighted the long-standing partnership between Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Republic of China, Taiwan.

Minister Bruce was speaking at a handing-over ceremony where Taiwan donated 20,000 bags of Rice, along with charitable items and a fire truck.

He said the partnership supports food security while strengthening climate-resilient agriculture as well as curbing predial larceny and reinforcing key pillars of the national economy.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, together we can expand greenhouse production, strengthen livestock development, and promote sustainable practices that safeguard our environment. With Taiwan's IT experts, we can modernize our system, implement traceability and stamp on predial larceny once and for all. This partnership will not only protect our farmers, it will go a long way to strengthen the four pillars of our economy, ensuring that agriculture, tourism, services, blue economy and IT go hand in hand."

Minister Bruce highlighted the emotional impact of predial larceny on farmers and emphasized that the use of technology provided by Taiwan could deter theft and restore trust.

"His loss was not just financial, it was emotional, a blow to his dignity and his thirst and trust in the system. Sadly, his story is not unique. Imagine if that farmer's produce had been digitally tagged and traceable from the farm to the market. The theft could been deterred, accountability insured. This is the promise of traceability system we now seek to implement. And so we look forward in the near future to the component of cooperation Madame Ambassador where Taiwan's IT knowledge and equipment will ease the pains of our farmers. We are exploring the installation of Taiwan's technology to fight the thieves and to bring back the smiles to the faces of our farmers."

SOURCE: National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC Radio)