Charlestown, Nevis
January 21, 2008
The Departments of Fisheries and Cooperatives in the Ministry of Agriculture on Nevis in collaboration with Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), concluded a three-day workshop on Thursday January 17, 2008 at the Nevis Cooperative Credit Union Conference Center.
The workshop on the Project Management Cycle attracted over 15 participants from the Board of Directors of the Nevis Fishermen Marketing and Supply Cooperatives Society Limited, staff of the Public Works Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Cooperatives and was facilitated by Mr. Mitsuhiro Ishida of JICA.
Speaking at the opening of the workshop on January 15, 2007, Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. Robelto Hector gave his full support to the training exercise and told participants they should maximise what was being taught.
“We welcome such training. I recognise that there are persons here from different backgrounds and while I am not an authority in management, I can tell you that any training in management brings to you the skills of working with individuals. When you work with individuals you would realise how important communication is and I am sure that somewhere throughout your training, emphasis will be placed on the aspects of communication and working together.”
“We must leave here making sure that we fully understand what is taught. Let us as we leave here recognise that we are part of organisations, we are part of ministries in which there are great challenges and that whatever we learn here let us resolve to put our knowledge into the day to day working of our environment,” he said.
The Minister of Agriculture noted that it was last year during Agriculture Week, when it was realised that management as a function within agriculture, had to be given greater attention, if the Ministry was to be successful and recapture the status that agriculture once had in the context of the country’s development.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Mr. Pearlivan Wilkin who declared the working opened, described the training as timely as it had come shortly after the Nevis Island Administration had spent in excess of $75,000 to refurbish the Fisheries Complex. A facility which he said was computerised, with an air-conditioned processing room, freezing equipment and new electrical, plumbing.
Mr. Wilkin expressed his confidence that the workshop would provide the theoretical and practical experiences to enhance the operations of the Complex and joined in thanking the JICO trainer.
“I have confidence in your ability to deliver the workshop especially since I have learnt that you are a fully certified and licensed teacher. Not every day we have consultants who are certified and licensed to teach and being a teacher myself, I do appreciate that and I note also that you are trained to teach globally.
“We can’t put down physical plants without providing training for the use of such but I want to say to you Mr. Ishida, that in addition to the experiences you will share I would like you to consider extending assistance to us in other areas of training. Maybe extended attachments for the fisheries trainees, also further training for fishers in general. I want to thank you for the advice that you gave to me,” he said.
During the three-day Project Management Cycle Training, the participants were able to gain a better understanding of project planning and execution and how to close off a project efficiently and effectively. The main topics were Project Analysis, Project Design Matrix and The Plan of Operation.