Several Caribbean policymakers this month agreed that the region should create an organisation to monitor rising food prices and to develop policies to reduce them.
The recommendation came out of a meeting held in Port of Spain, Trinidad by representatives of the Caribbean Community, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation and the Caribbean Development Bank.
Policies addressed at the meeting aim to reduce high food costs, a key cause of poverty, in the short, medium and long term, according to a press release from Caricom.
“This is especially so for vulnerable groups of poor families who constitute approximately 20 percent of the population,” Florita Kentish, an FAO representative, said at the meeting.
See the July 14, 2011 edition for full coverage.