BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – Chairman of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Commission on the Economy, Professor Avinash Persaud, that regional countries are getting closer to having a fast ferry system that would result in quicker and more affordable transportation of cargo and people across the region.
But he also acknowledges that the initiative that could help reduce the region’s food import bill could be between US$100 million and may take approximately two years to materialize.
Professor Avinash Persaud
“We are currently in negotiations with some potential private partners who will deliver that if governments provide some support, but it is early days yet,” he told the online publication Barbados TODAY, adding that the discussions so far have included examining the possibility of two specially-built vessels.
One passenger vessel would be similar to the one that operates between Port of Spain and Tobago, while the other would be a smaller one to transport cargo.
In April last year, Trinidad and Tobago welcomed the Australian made US$72. Nine million “Bucco Reef” vessels with a capacity of 1 000 persons.
“They are huge boats. They cost US$75 million, and we also need a secondary boat that is more cargo-focused. So, to make a smoother ride for passengers and a fast ride for cargo, you are probably spending out US$100 million,” said Persaud, who also serves as the Special Envoy to Prime Minister Mia Mottley on Investment and Financial Services,
He said that even after governments agree to the new service, vessels would have to be built, and regulatory and other issues would have to be ironed out to ensure smooth operation between countries.
“So, people are putting proposals to us. Let’s say we like one of these proposals and go through a tender process; once we have decided that it is an idea worth getting a tender over, it will take about 18 months to build the boat. So, this is not happening around the corner, but it is a critical long-run to the food bill,” said Persaud.
CARICOM states aim to reduce their six billion US dollar food import bill by 25 percent by 2025. Persaud told Barbados TODAY that achieving food and nutrition security across the region was highly critical.
“To ensure that we have nutrition security and access to cheaper food, transport is one of the most important things.
“Ultimately, we are too small to feed ourselves continuously. We can improve the amount of nutrition security we have, but we can never get there ultimately. And it wouldn’t make sense when we are next door to Guyana and Suriname and part of the same region as Belize – three countries with tremendous agricultural potential that can consistently deliver food at a greater quantity and lower cost than we could.
“So, we need to be strategic and niche. But for the region, we need these other countries to be exporting food across the region, and it requires transport,” he added.
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