TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO - TRINITE-ET-TOBAGO - TRINIDAD Y TABAGO

Mr. Vincent Moe, Acting Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Land and Marine Resources of Trinidad and Tobago

Let me first apologize for the Honourable Minister of Agriculture, Land and Marine Resources, who is unavoidably absent due to pressing matters of State.

On behalf of the Government and the people of the twin island Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, may I take this opportunity to congratulate and thank FAO for organizing this World Food Summit to address the critical need for global commitment and action on the most basic problem of mankind, as we approach the twenty-first century - food security. I also wish to thank the Government of Italy for the gracious hospitality which they have extended to us and for their contribution in making this historic event possible.

The Government of Trinidad and Tobago is of the view that poverty is one of the root causes of malnutrition and hunger. While poverty steals away the opportunity to have a life unmarked by sickness, a decent education, a secure home and survival in old age, it deprives mankind of access to one of the most fundamental human rights, the right to an active and healthy life with dignity. It is perhaps the first time in our history that we have a political acknowledgement that the eradication of poverty, hunger and malnutrition has to be a priority of our global society.

The Government of Trinidad and Tobago pledges its political will and its common and national commitment to this Declaration on World Food Security and wishes to assure this Summit that, in collaboration with civil society, it will assume overall responsibility for the implementation of the Plan of Action approved by this Summit towards the achievement of food security for all. We make this pledge, mindful of the fact that extreme poverty and hunger must be recognized as an utterly unacceptable and intolerable condition of life and must be seen as a social debt owed to the poor.

The transformation and revitalization of agriculture, including fisheries and forestry, in Trinidad and Tobago and other food-deficit countries are critical to the achievement of this humanitarian objective: Food for All.

At the 19th meeting of the Standing Committee of Ministers responsible for agriculture and at the Heads of Government Conference of Caribbean Community Member States, held in June and July of 1996, a unanimous decision was taken to revitalize Caribbean agriculture because of its critical importance to the social and economic development of the region. Caribbean agriculture faces a formidable challenge at this time arising out of the implementation of the Uruguay Round of Trade Agreements. We must, therefore, either transform the sector or perish. Trinidad and Tobago recognizes that the agricultural sector is of strategic importance to the overall growth and development of our national economy. Its aim is to make the sector, including forestry and fisheries, vibrant, vigorous, efficient and internationally competitive, capable of generating profitable enterprises, able to attract investment from the local and foreign private sectors alike, within the concept of sustainable development.

In this regard, the Government has developed an Agriculture Sector Reform Programme with the support of the Inter-American Development Bank aimed at a wide range of policy, infrastructural and institutional reforms. These reforms are intended to strengthen the performance of the sector, rationalize public sector expenditure in agriculture, provide essential infrastructure and achieve fiscal savings.

Measures have been implemented to reform protectionist, distortionary economic policies to increase international competitiveness. It is expected that in the medium term these measures will foster economic diversification, increase sectoral employment and enhance agriculture's contribution to national GDP.

Some of the most critical and sensitive areas being addressed include:

· Land use and land administration for greater transparency and equity in the distribution of state lands for domestic agricultural production;

· Enhanced water management systems for agriculture and aquaculture encompassing the formulation of a master plan for the development and management of the national water resources, and to determine the specific water requirements for agriculture. This plan will seek to ensure that domestic agricultural producers are allowed the use of water at reasonable and fair prices;

· Significant investment in the productive infrastructure for the agricultural sector, such as land and access roads development, marketing infrastructure, irrigation and drainage systems, all of which play critical roles in achieving the desired increase in aggregate sector output and performance;

· Institutional strengthening and public administration reform to improve agricultural support services and sector policy programming and budgetary functions; and finally

· A social mitigation programme to help offset the impact of the agricultural sector reform programme on vulnerable groups in rural communities and displaced workers.

Within the recent past, there has been a sufficiency of food in Trinidad and Tobago to meet the basic nutritional requirements of the population with a tendency towards excesses in energy, protein and fat. Despite the availability of food at the national level a substantial proportion of our households - 26 percent - exist below the poverty line and have limited access to food, leading to moderate to severe undernutrition. These conditions have been exacerbated by the country's economic downturn in the 1980s and early 1990s as a result of depressed oil prices, the major contributor to national GDP.

It is against this background that Trinidad and Tobago identifies with the global problem of hunger and malnutrition which this Summit seeks to address so adroitly. Today we stand at the dawn of a new era. We who live in this period of stunning technological innovation, unprecedented economic opportunity, surprising political reform and great cultural rebirth are at the threshold of the new millennium, the Year 2000. This monumental date stands for the future and what we shall make of it. In three short years that time will be upon us and we must respond to the compelling need of this moment to reexamine ourselves, our values and our institutions in pursuit of a greater humanity. In so doing, Trinidad and Tobago calls upon the international community to align themselves with the vision and aspirations of this Rome Declaration on World Food Security.

Let us renew our universal commitment to ensure that all people have, at all times, secure access at affordable cost to the food they need for a productive and healthy life with dignity.