Page 4 - Courtney M Missick 2021 Manifesto

The Seven Pillars Draft
PILLAR 1:
Sustainable Development of the Agricultural Section
The key focus of sustainable development of the agricultural sector in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) is the growing of food for a healthy nation through ensuring that there is a linkage between the food we eat and the medicine we take as they must complement each other. The following are several initiatives to achieve this outcome:
• Redesign the existing Turks and Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) Farm into a modernized model farm for all agricultural farms that will be created on a larger scale across the TCI.
• Design a Program in which ten (10) 0.25-acre tutorial plots will be created in a section of the TCIG Farm where aspiring farmers can be taught various farming techniques which are best suited for our environment.
• Grant long term crown land lease of up to three (3) acres person/group at the peppercorn rate of $10 per acre per year in a designated area identified as being best suitable for farming.
• Grant farming subsidies of up to $50,000 per acre for startup cost which would include the purchase of seedlings, ploughing of land, Insurance and partial payment of workers for up to one year.
• TCIG will be responsible for installing power and irrigational system infrastructure on the lease designated area identified as being best suitable for farming land.
• Locally Owned Private Farms can apply for a grant of up to $100,000.
• All grant and/or farmland lease recipients will be subject to the completion of the Farm Tutorial Program above and funding release will be through an approval-based system; not given in lump sums.
• Initiative encouraging Community and Home Farming.
- CAMPAIGN PLATFORM -