Consistent with a drive by the Government of Jamaica to increase the country’s agricultural productivity, various initiatives have been introduced to boost agriculture production to ensure food security, increase income generation, foreign exchange earnings, and promote rural development.

Among the major initiatives are the Soil Fertility Mapping Project and the Production Incentive to Farmers Programme. The objective of the Soil Fertility Mapping Project is to increase productivity, improve the quality of agricultural output, optimize farmer’s profits, and enhance farming efficiency, while maintaining good environmental stewardship, through an integrated soil management system.  The Production Incentive to Farmers Programme aims to support agricultural production through provision of incentives for small farmers and other investors in the production of strategically selected crops and livestock. Accordingly, the availability of updated soil information is critical to determine the soil characteristics for decision making regarding crop type and the necessary farm inputs for increased output and productivity. This is in a context where the agricultural sector is also vulnerable to the effects of climate change given changing weather patterns and the increased risk and intensity of natural disasters, such as flooding and drought.

The joint special/performance audit objective is to assess the efficiency and effectiveness of the Ministry of Agriculture’s administration of the programme/project, including the implementation activities of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority.  The audit seeks to provide assurance to Parliament on the effectiveness of the MoAFM in successfully delivering the programme/project deliverables to farmers.

We value your relevant comments to our audit which can be communicated by completing the relevant fields on our feedback form or email us at audgen@auditorgeneral.gov.jm.    Please note that due to the volume of information received, we may not respond to you directly; however, we thank you in advance for your response.

Vision 2030 NDP identifies the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA) which falls under the Ministry of Agriculture, as the entity responsible for agricultural roads. RADA’s 2015-18 Strategic Business Plan stated that the programmes put forward under the NDP, are intended to enhance production and productivity through a series of enabling interventions that would address the problems hampering production and simultaneously present opportunities for growth enhancement within the agricultural sector. Accordingly, RADA instituted a prioritization strategy, which entailed identifying roads it considered most in need of repairs and which when rehabilitated, would more likely contribute to the achievement of the National Vision.