 Farmers of agriculture regions 1 and 2 got an opportunity to participate in a consultation headed by the Minister responsible for Agriculture, Honourable Alfred Prosper, and Parliamentary Representative for Babano, Virginia Poyotte, to discuss on what challenges and concerns they face in crop farming, and the way forward in ensuring the success of the agriculture industry. The high costs of production and farm inputs, as well as limited market access, were extensively discussed. The Prosper, noting that concerns were also raised about young people losing interest in the industry, expressed his commitment to ensuring that a strategy to engage the youth is implemented. The young people want to know that there is something in it for them. They want to know that there is opportunity for them to make money. And so that is what they have not seen in the sector. And it is one area of concern to me as a Minister to find opportunities for availability of land for our young people, to put in place mechanisms for our young people to be able to access funds from the financial institutions to give them a start-up, to improve and to help them focus on new technology, because climate change is a very important phenomenon that can have significant negative impacts on the agricultural sector, and to really mechanize the sector to reduce the cost of what we produce locally. Minister Prosper, alongside Minister Poyot, visited several vegetable farms during their tour of the region to assess the production methods used. They also paid a visit to the currently closed Barbono processing facility, which Minister Prosper believes, if reopened, could help agro processors improve the quality of produce coming out of St. Lucia. I know the agro processing facility was constructed for the benefit of the rural women in Barbono. And at this juncture, the closure of this facility is a really concern to me, because agro processing is a very, very important part of the agricultural sector. It creates employment for a number of, especially, unemployed women. And I would really like to see something with an urgent need to reopen the facility and to engage the women who will be immediate target for the operation of this facility to really get into some form of income-generating activity through agro processing. Recognizing the agriculture industry's importance to St. Lucia's economic development, Minister Prosper has stated that he will continue efforts to engage farmers to ensure that the right measures are implemented to help resolve the many challenges faced by farmers in the industry. From the Communications Unit of the Ministry of Agriculture, I am Anicia Antoine reporting.