Jamaica Govt committed to planting one million fruit and timber trees

Kingston, Jamaica - Food For The Poor has perpetrated to planting one million fruit and timber trees over the subsequent three years.

This is in aid of the Government's aim to plant three million trees over three years under a national tree planting initiative begun by Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

Minister of Housing, Urban Renewal, Environment and Climate Change, Pearnel Charles Jr, stated that the initiative by Food For The Poor is being initiated under a programme called Fruits for the Poor, originated.

"These trees contain 22 types of fruit trees being developed by the organisation in its newly established fruit tree nursery, and in the upcoming year they will also be planting additional nursery space and, with the support of the Forestry Department, will also rise to germinate timber species," he said.

He was speaking the Youth Month tree-planting exercise now at Boulevard Baptist Church in St Andrew.

Charles Jr recorded that the Forestry Department, which is leading the three million trees initiative, is finalising other significant partnerships with private and public sector entities, which will result in a substantial rise in the rate and number of the targeted trees being planted.

He noted that the Forestry Department had taken practical steps to ensure the success of the programme.

"They have ramped up a generation of tree seedlings at their nurseries as well as secured partnerships by both public and private sector entities to identify and secure additional resources such as land, funding and labour," Charles Jr said.

He gave that up to September; the Department had planted and distributed approximately 250,000 ornamental wood and fruit tree seedlings with another 70,000 scheduled to be produced and distributed before the end of 2020.