New Zealand and IICA Mission Advances Climate-Smart Agriculture in Dominica

A delegation from New Zealand's

Climate Smart Agriculture Initiative, led by Programme Manager, Lee Nelson and Project

Consultant, Dr. Julian Hill, has completed a successful five-day mission to Dominica,

advancing the country's efforts to build a more resilient and sustainable agricultural sector.

The mission, which took place from June 22 – 26, 2026, formed part of the project "Advancing

Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices in Dominica to Increase Production and Mitigate

Greenhouse Gas Emissions." The project, implemented by the Inter-American Institute for

Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and

Green Economy, is funded by the Government of New Zealand through its Climate Smart

Agriculture Initiative (NZCSA-LAC), as part of its contribution to the Global Research Alliance

on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA), and administered through the Ag Emissions Centre.

A high-level meeting was held with the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and Green Economy, Ryan Anselm, and Her Excellency Linda Te Puni, New Zealand's Ambassador to the OECS, to update them on project findings, deliverables, and next steps. The Permanent Secretary endorsed the report's recommendations and

confirmed the Government's commitment to

integrating climate-smart agriculture into national policy frameworks, including the Climate Resilience and Recovery Plan and the National Resilience Development Strategy.

Three national workshops were delivered during the mission, reaching a wide cross-section of

stakeholders. A Train-the-Trainer session on Land Use and Watershed Management was held on 23rd June, focusing on erosion control, riparian buffer protection, slope stabilization, agroforestry integration, and spatial zoning for forest-safe livestock expansion. Participants included representatives from Physical Planning, the Extension Regional Team Leaders and Dominica State College.

A Farmer Meeting on 24th June brought together farmers from all agricultural regions to discuss practical climate-smart practices including mulching, contour planting, soil cover management, fertilizer timing, and animal health improvements. A second Train-the-Trainer session on Agricultural Production Systems was held on 25th June, covering split fertilizer timing, manure composting, improved forage systems, protected cropping, irrigation monitoring, and farm-level record-keeping for MRV.

The delegation also visited the Dominica-China Agricultural Science Complex at the North Agriculture Station in Portsmouth. The facility

features a tissue culture laboratory with capacity to house up to 500,000 disease-free seedlings, a seed storage and seed bank facility, a smart greenhouse for hardening plants,

seedling propagation areas, hydroponic systems, and research plots. The complex serves as Dominica's largest seedling base, technology exchange hub, and demonstration park, training local farmers in seedling propagation and greenhouse cultivation.

A radio show appearance featuring Lee Nelson, Dr. Julian Hill, and the Ministry's focal point to

the project, Dr Al-Mario Casimir, highlighted project findings and shed light on the week's

activities to the Dominican public, further strengthening awareness of climate-smart agriculture opportunities.

The mission marks the successful completion of the project's technical phase. The next phase

will focus on delivering in-country train-the-trainer sessions to equip extension officers and

farmer representatives with the practical skills to implement climate-smart practices across Dominica’s agricultural regions.