THE EDITOR: I was very surprised to see the lack of congratulations to the Ministry of Agriculture on the over $5 million in grants distributed to farmers recently.

Since taking over the helm of the ministry, Kazim Hosein has quietly and humbly, some might say too much so, gone about his business supporting those involved in agriculture and it is high time he be recognised for that.

The ministry's website states that the programme seeks to empower farmers to modernise their facilities, adopt new technologies, and improve efficiency and safety in their agricultural practices. These are all laudable intentions, but that would be nothing but political rhetoric if not matched by actual work.

Two hundred farmers and $25 million later, I would say the work shows that Hosein is not all talk.

I wonder how many MPs representing the farmers who have been positively impacted will offer their own thanks in Parliament. I suspect none will and the usual narrative of farmers being ignored or, worse, targeted for abuse will continue.

Can more be done? Most definitely yes - farmers are still undervalued by society in general and we need to seek every possible means to change that. It starts in our schools and our young people. Changing the perception of farming requires a cultural change. For that we need all hands on deck to bring the seeds planted at the Agri Investment Forum and Expo in 2022 to fruition. It seems that the soil is fertile and there is political will to do so.

In the meanwhile, I offer the thanks and recognition to Minister Hosein and his ministry that I expect them not to get from anyone else.

DANIEL P WILLIAM

Diego Martin

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