The conclusion of the Ministry of Agriculture’s Praedial Larceny Consultancies
On Tuesday 6th June, The Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) in collaboration with the Barbuda Council held the last of six Praedial Larceny Consultations (PLC) at the Fisheries Complex Conference room on Barbuda. To the disappointment of the MoA only four of the sixty-five registered farmers attended this critically important meeting.
Despite what would be considered a poor attendance, those that made the effort to attend were very co-operative and forthcoming with very pertinent information that would certainly be an inclusion to the report to be generated by the PLC sub-committee chairman, Mr. Martin Cave.
The Barbuda consultation revealed another level of this illegal Act that has been experienced by All farmers on the sister island. After months of planning and preparation this meeting, the MoA is grateful that it took place and wants to thank all the participants on both islands who took the time to be a part of this exercise.
It is anticipated that the final report will be submitted by end of September 2023 for further submission to Antigua and Barbuda Cabinet and Parliament for approval. The MoA is hopeful that the recommendations in this report once approved would be a step closer in the revision of the 1954 Praedial Larceny (Prevention) Act which were enacted with little or insufficient penalties and recourses to address matters of Praedial Larceny on Antigua and Barbuda.