"Suriname is the first country in the Carribean to sign an agreement with Agro Business. This is a significant collaboration for our country," said District Commissioner (DC), Kenya Pansa, of the Brokopondo district, in an interview with the Suriname Herald.
She reached an agreement with her counterparts, Freddy Daniël of the Marowijne district and Margaretha Malonti of the Paramaka district yesterday. This goal of this joint effort is to export greenhouse crops to the United States. For now, only tomatoes and peppers are going to be cultivated. Other crops are, however, not excluded from future exports.
Pansa considers this project to be a massive step in the right direction, especially for horticulture, in her district. The three DCs also see this as an opportunity for reducing unemployment in their districts. They say they still have to have talks with the local community about the exact implementation of this project. According to Pansa, each district will get 15 hectares of greenhouses.
Malonti explained that, in her district, the road to Langatabiki is suitable for greenhouse cultivation. She, therefore, thinks the area will be chosen as the site where this project will be carried out. Daniël, on the other hand, is not yet sure where the best location is in his district to build the greenhouses.
The project will cost more than $15 million. If everything goes according to plan, it should begin within 60 days.