Consolidating on the excellent friendly relations between the Kingdom of Morocco and Grenada, the Ministry of Agriculture has received a new shipment of phosphate-based fertilisers and equipment under the Moroccan Soil Fertility Mapping Project.
The equipment will be used by staff of the Agronomy and Extension Divisions to support farmers in boosting their production and improving their livelihoods. The equipment will also support the Ministry’s focus on improving farming methodologies using science.
A ceremony held on Wednesday at the Mirabeau Agricultural Station, signaled the Ministry’s intention to commence the sale and distribution of fertilisers soon and was also used an as opportunity to hand over the equipment to the Extension Department.
Acting Chief Agronomist, Allison Haynes, explained that all four types of fertilisers received, namely Triple Super Phosphate (TSP), Di-Ammonia Phosphate (DAP), a Nitrogen Phosphate Sulfur & Boron blend (NPSB) and the Mono-Ammonium Phosphate, are excellent starter fertilisers.
She said, “These fertilisers must be used at the beginning of the crop cycle; farmers will need to apply them when they are planting. They would need to put it in the holes, or during land preparation and plough it in.”
Ms. Haynes anticipates an improvement in the level of services offered to the farmers.
The fertilisers provided by the Moroccan Government are part of a Regional Scientific and Technical Cooperation Agreement that provides fertilisers to farmers to improve productivity and build capacity in the agriculture sector. Agriculture contributes almost 15% to Morocco’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and combined with the fishing and forestry sectors, employs about 45% of Morocco’s workforce.
Chief Agricultural Officer, Trevor Thompson, said that as part of the Ministry’s capacity building thrust, focusing on farmers, technical guides will be developed to assist them in understanding how, when, and what type of crops they should use each fertiliser type for.
“The priority for us is the application of these fertilisers correctly because each fertiliser is different and has its specific uses. They are not broad-based fertilisers that can be used on all types of vegetables, food crops, fruit trees, etc.; we have to know when, how much and which crop to apply them to,” he remarked.
Thompson also appealed to farmers to take heed of information provided by the Ministry. “Farmers should adhere to the application instruments, as we have moved away from the broadcast method of application to the more focused application method to maximise the benefits of these fertilisers.”
Under the ongoing Soil Fertility Mapping Project, 1800 soil samples were collected and analysed, with a fertility map to be developed soon with support from the Kingdom of Morocco.
Minister for Agriculture, Hon. Peter David, reiterated the overall aim of improving production through innovation and transformation.
He said, “Our objective is to improve production and to make sure that more agricultural land is available. These are new and exciting times for the sector. We are very appreciative of the support from the Kingdom of Morocco that can help us to be more efficient in our production by using a scientific approach.”
The Government of Grenada and the Kingdom of Morocco have defined a road map of cooperation in areas including education, health, technical cooperation, agriculture, tourism, and economic support.
The Kingdom of Morocco’s Soil Fertility Mapping Project will build technical capacity through the establishment of a Regional Soil Testing Facility, to serve the OECS Region. This will provide expert advice on the use of fertilisers and help with the development of the required protocols for the transportation, storage, and disposal of soil samples taken for testing.
Ministry of Agriculture…ensuring food and nutrition security
