The new national food and agriculture institute will equip students with the skills to grow food, launch businesses, drive scientific innovation, and generate employment opportunities in a modernised economy, a respected authority on agriculture has predicted.

The Barbados Institute of Food and Agriculture (BIFA) will move well beyond classroom theory, providing practical training in food production, business development, and technological innovation, according to Dr Chelston Brathwaite, Project Consultant to the Task Force on the China Aid Agricultural Development Project.

Dr Brathwaite, the former director general of the Inter- American Institute of Agriculture and the only Caribbean person to helm the hemispheric agency in its 83-year history, is guiding the development of BIFA under a governmentto-government partnership between Barbados and China.

Dr Brathwaite also served as Bridgetown’s second resident ambassador to Beijing between 2014 and 2017 Speaking during a ministerial tour of the future campus at Hope Plantation in St Lucy, Dr Brathwaite described the initiative as the start of a new chapter in the island’s agricultural development.

“This is a very special moment because we are at the beginning of a new chapter in agricultural development in Barbados,” he said. “No successful agricultural system anywhere in the world has developed without a continuous supply of trained people to go into the sector.”

BIFA will address longstanding gaps in agricultural training by combining teacher education, short technical courses, and entrepreneurial farm management, all based on hands-on learning across its 45-acre property.

“Here at Hope, we have the potential to emphasise the practical aspects of agriculture. We have 45 acres of land, and the idea is to make this into an entrepreneurial farm, one that emphasises agribusiness, healthy food production, water harvesting, waste management, processing and preservation,” Dr Brathwaite explained.

He added that agricultural training must evolve to support not only government extension services but also self-employment, innovation, and agri-entrepreneurship. He called for stronger data and research partnerships with the University of the West Indies and other regional agencies to better understand the nutritional value of local food.

Among the career paths envisioned for BIFA graduates are roles in greenhouse technology, irrigation systems, organic agriculture, food processing, biotechnology, agronomy, pest management, marketing, food labelling, nutrition, and plant pathology.

BIFA’s goal is to produce graduates who are capable of creating their own employment, have a sound understanding of the sciences and their application to agriculture, and can contribute to team building and national development.

Stressing that the training must be inclusive and flexible, Dr Brathwaite said: “Not everyone will be able to study for two years. That’s why we’ll offer short courses, one-week training in areas like irrigation, greenhouse technology, pesticide use, AI and drones. This is about skilling people already in the field and getting new entrants excited about what’s possible.”

He added: “Teachers are the gatekeepers of education. If they don’t understand the importance of agriculture, then we are doomed.”

The curriculum will be built on four pillars: science, technology, entrepreneurship, and environmental sustainability, with every programme designed to prepare students to either support the Ministry of Agriculture or create independent enterprises.

“With the collaboration of the ministries of training, agriculture, health and tourism, this can be a national tool for transformation,” said Dr Brathwaite. (SM)