Nassau, Bahamas – An array of Bahamian food products is in store for patrons attending the Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources’ third National Agribusiness Expo scheduled for March 3rd through 5th at the Gladstone Road Agriculture Centre.
Prime Minister Hubert A Ingraham will deliver the keynote address and Governor General Sir Arthur Foulkes will present the awards.
Large contingents of food producers from nearly all the islands are expected to participate, said Agriculture an Marine Resources Minister Lawrence S ‘Larry’ Cartwright on Thursday. Provisions are being made for at least 150 vendors.
A wide variety of fruits, vegetables, meats, marine products, pastries, preserves, ornamentals, and handicrafts will be featured and offered for sale. Fifty-one agricultural science students will compete in root crop, fruits and vegetables categories.
There will be cooking demonstrations and culinary competitions utilising native ingredients, he said.
The linkages between agriculture and marine resources, and education, tourism, health and the manufacturing sectors will be explored.
“The Ministry of Agriculture and Marine resources continues to make great strides in meeting its mandate to enhance the ability of the farming and fishing industries to fuel economic development and improve the quality of life of Bahamians,” said Mr Cartwright.
“The sustainability, growth and development of the agribusiness sector are pivotal in our quest for achieving food security and making agriculture a strong pillar of our economy. These expos underscore our commitment to this mandate.
“For persons with interests in any aspect of agribusiness, the Expo will be the place to forge networks,” he added.
Canesfins, VAT is the way to go because high levels of unemploymnet has very little effect on the revenue streams because VAT is a consumer tax. VAT is also a fairer and more efficient way of collecting taxes because VAT is only on the value added to the product. This will in many cases make them cheaper; in addition some items such as basic groceries, medicines and medical devices attract a zero tax and create a savings for the consumer.Will VAT support the country? probably as more taxes will be collected. Finally, how will the services industry react? I really do not know but, i know this.Under the WTO Tax Harmonisation plan, we will see VAT sooner rather than later if the Bahamas wants to be a full member.
Michael – and why do you think a VAT is the way to go? Why do you think it can raise the revenues necessary to support the country? How do you think the services industry would react to a VAT?
Successive governments have tried to make the Bahamas less dependent on imported foods. Indeed, if we can get the cost of food down our tourism product will be cheaper and, Bahamians would also benefit.But,this will not happen until import duties fall away.Since import duties is the main source of governemnt income{customs duties] it will have to be replaced by VAT. VAT is the 800llb gorilla in the room that the PLP and FNM continue to ignore.
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