The
Development Planning Unit
Government of the British Virgin Islands

NATIONAL INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY

Emerging Issues, Agriculture

AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN THE BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS
A TECHNICAL REPORT PREPARED FOR THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON PRODUCTIVE SECTORS
AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT
JUNE 1997

1.0    INTRODUCTION

This report is an attempt to document the changes that occurred in the Agricultural Sector of the British Virgin Islands during the past sixty years. Emphasis here is not so much on historical aspects, but the impact of macro-economic environment on agriculture.

This report is presented in six parts. Firstly, a brief geographical and historical background, agriculture as a backbone of the territory’s economy between 40’s and 60’s and the decline in agriculture and its possible reasons. Secondly, an analysis on the existing situation. Thirdly, the problems/constraints/issues experienced with agriculture. Fourthly, the requirements of the agriculture sector. Fiftly, the policies/strategies that should be implemented. Finally, the programmes and projects proposed.

2.0   GEOGRAPHICAL & HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

The British Virgin Islands (BVI) consists of a chain of mountainous islands, mainly volcanic in origin, most of which rise straight up from the sea. Exclusively of small rocks and reefs, there are 40 – 50 islands (of which 15 are inhabited) with a total of 60 square miles. The main islands are Tortola (on which is located the commercial capital and seat of government – Road Town), Anegada, Virgin Gorda and Jost Van Dyke.

Tortola, the largest with an area of 26 square miles, is a hilly island with unbroken ranges running its full length. Virgin Gorda which is 8.3 square miles, consists of a southern flat peninsular almost cleared for grazing and farming, and a northern half which rises straight from the water to hills reaching up to 1359 feet. Jost Van Dyke is a small, hilly island. Anegada is 14.9 square miles and the only coral island of the group. It consists almost entirely of limestone with very little subsoil and limited water resources. Its agriculture traditionally consists of the cultivation of some fast growing crops during the rainy season.

Out of the 37,000 acres (Klumb & Robbins, 1960) estimated that 10,000 acres are not suitable for any form of agriculture, as they are too precipitous and rocky. And, out of the 27,000 acres suitable for agriculture, only 2% is flat land. The soils are derived from granite schists and shales, and can support as good a vegetative cover as the depth of soil, nutrient status and rainfall will allow. A notable feature of the topography is the existence of some natural ponds, which collects a fair amount of run-off water. Some of these ponds dry out in the dry season and many near to the coastline become saline. Several wells are dotted along the coastline, but during the drought periods they tend to become too saline and unfit for any agriculture use. The sixty-year average rainfall recorded for Road Town is 52.8 inches, with the highest being 88.5 inches in 1932 (Wilson & Campbell, 1963).

Similar to the historical production patterns in the other colonies of the Leeward Islands, BVI’s agriculture depended on production of cotton and sugarcane. However, the extent of production, compared with other colonies was low. Obviously, the above-described geographical features prohibited large-scale farming.

Agriculture Department Report for the year 1923, states that cotton production had steadily declined since 1920 from exports of 49,682 lbs of lint to 200 lbs in 1922, and finally in 1924 only 329 lbs. The decline of cotton has been attributed to the incidence of Cotton Pink Boll Worm, a devastating pest much difficult to control. Several attempts were made to revive the cotton industry including implementation of close season and change in planting time to control the ravages of the Pink Boll Worm.

Tobacco was promoted as an alternative for cotton from the year 1923. In the same year a cigar factory was established. In 1924 the factory produced 32,400 cigars, the number increased to 118,400 in 1927.

Livestock production also took a prominent place during the 20’s. In 1923, 1600 heads of cattle were exported. The other products that substituted included coconuts, charcoal and other fruits and vegetables.

2.1   AGRICULTURE – THE BACKBONE OF BVI ECONOMY (1940 – 1960)

During the period 1940 to 1960, agriculture had been the main economic activity in the British Virgin Islands and was predominantly small farmer oriented. Census reports indicated that during the 40’s almost 65% of the population were involved in agriculture, but in 1960 the number decreased to 36%. Estate agriculture, which was practiced in the other islands, was non-existent in the BVI. All farms were owned and operated on a family basis with practically no wage labour. There was however, a certain amount of free reciprocal farm help. Cultivation had been entirely by hand implements. At the end of 1956, the Department of Agriculture acquired two tractors for hire to the farmers. The impact was not greatly felt due the steep terrain of the island.

The method of cultivation was rotational, alternating from food crops to pastures and ultimately to secondary bush. The cycle begins again after the land had been rested for a period of two to three years. Most of the fertile land was to be found on hill slopes at higher elevations and in the valleys. This greatly increased the labour component of the production costs.

Produce harvested was marketed directly to the consumer by the producer himself or his family, or sold in St. Thomas. In the instance where the produce was exported to St. Thomas, it was done through the sole export market, through an agent. This person was usually the captain of the sloop which carried the produce.

The principal crops grown during that period were:

Sugar Cane: Sugar was mainly grown for the manufacture of rum for export. Because of the small scattered plots, it was difficult to estimate the exact acreage under sugar cane. The territorial reports estimate an average of 80 acres under cultivation for the period. On average $3,620 worth of rum was exported annually. The highest recorded export was in 1959, an amount of $7,200 and the lowest record was in 1949 and amount of $79. Again the principal market was USVI.

Limes: These were extensively grown throughout the colony. There were no large scale orchards of pure limes, but almost all farm units as well as backyards consisted of a few lime trees. Lime production was both for local consumption as well as exports. Between 1950 and 1960, the average annual export were valued at $400.00.

Bananas: Bananas took a prominent position during the late 30’s and early 40’s. But, the greatest increase in production was seen in the mid 50’s. Once again, because of small scattered plots the exact acreage was not estimated. The average annual of exports for bananas between 1950 to 1960 is recorded as $3,400. All exports were destined for USVI.

Coconuts: Demands for coconuts were very high, both locally as well as for exports. Territorial report of 1957 estimates 100 acres under coconut cultivation yielding approximately 50,000 nuts per annum. Average annual exports, both for green as well as dried nuts, is valued at $2,800.00. Coconuts were also used as the source for pig and poultry feed locally.

Food Crops: Food crops mainly consisted of ground provisions (sweet potatoes, yams, cassava & tannia) and to a lesser extent vegetables. These crops were mainly grown for domestic consumption during the early 40’s and 50’s. During mid 50’s, there had been an outstanding increase in production and large quantities were exported to USVI. The average annual exports (including fruits and charcoal), during 1952 and 1960 was $28,300.

Apart from the above principal crops, charcoal was another product, which played a significant role in the agricultural sector. Many of the farmers/land owners produced charcoal both for local as well as for export to USVI. There are no detailed figures of production available. But, the practice was questioned in some documents as it leads to deforestation, soil erosion and finally environmental degradation.

LIVESTOCK

The topography and climate of the BVI lends itself more to animal husbandry than crop production. Hence, livestock production played a very significant role in the economy. The territorial report for 1959 states…

"The livestock industry continues to be the backbone of the economy, the islands being topographically and climatically suited to the cultivation of grass and the production of livestock."

Practically any land in the BVI could have been used for livestock rearing. The only limiting factor was water. Farmers went through difficult periods during drought.

Livestock population recorded during the year 1954, 1958 as well as 1963 show the following numbers:

Table 1

Livestock was the major source of income for the farmers, both as exports as well as domestic consumption. Livestock exports steadily increased from late 40’s to all the way up to 1959. Almost 80% of the incomes from exports were attributed to livestock. The main export markets were French West Indies, St. Thomas and to a lesser extent to Leeward Islands. The average annual value of livestock exports is recorded as $186,00. The highest recorded exports were in 1954 for a value of $231,188. And the lowest being in 1960 for $2,941. There were some exports recorded after 1960 but the accuracy was negligible. All livestock exports were in the form of live animals. Though the exports were significant, there was no marketing organization. The Department of Agriculture provided inspection and weighing services. Traders paid direct cash to the livestock farmers. Prices ranged from 10 to 17 cents per pound live weight. Chart 1 shows the agricultural exports for the period of 1950-1975.

2.2    DECLINE OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION

Since 1960, agriculture in the British Virgin Islands took course of steady decline. It is natural consequence of development, that fewer and fewer people become engaged in agricultural production. Normally this is because as the efficiency in the agricultural sector increases, less human resources are required to produce the same unit of output and the labour is released for employment in other industries. In the British Virgin Islands, however, the drift of agriculture labour did not indicate increase in efficiency. It was to the detriment of agriculture sector the labour was released to construction and tourism.

In a paper presented to the Economic Development Advisory Committee in 1977, then Chief Agriculture Officer, E. N. Vanterpool states:

"That the agriculture sector declined absolutely rather than relatively was an indication of poor economic planning for the territory at the time by both the Home Government and the Local Government. The indications are that the drift from agricultural production in the sixties was simultaneously accompanied by withdrawal of Government’s moral and financial support."

The decline in agriculture is a result of several forces. Firstly, as Vanterpoool states, neglect of the sector. Changes in the macro-economic conditions such as a buoyant economy in the USVI, experienced through rapid expansion of tourism facilities, the Government’s policy to devout much of the resources to infrastructure development to promote tourism in the BVI and the resulting increase in construction industry, changes in the eating habits and clear preference to imported foods have been some of the forces.

Labour Movements: It is a natural tendency for labour to move into areas of higher remuneration, and agricultural workers in the BVI are no exception.

The Territorial Report of 1961 states:

"The economy of the Colony is closely affected by the events in adjacent United States Virgin Islands and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. The rapid economic expansion in these territories has in many ways made its impression on the economy of British Virgin Islands, particularly by drawing away labour and forcing up local wage rates."

"The Proximity of USVI and the traditional ties between the two groups of islands, give British Virgin Islands a specially favoured position with regard to employment. It has been estimated that more than 10% of the total population of the British Virgin Islands is employed in St. Thomas at any one time."

So along with labour from other sectors, agricultural workers migrated to St. Thomas for higher wages. With the demand for labour increasing, and the high wages paid in St. Thomas, wages in the BVI had to increase and the labour intensive agriculture in the BVI could not stand up to the competition. This resulted in lower agricultural production.

The Territorial Report for 1962 states:

"Government policy has been to devote bulk of substantial grant-in-aid and generous grants from the Colonial Development and Welfare funds to projects which will improve communications, increase trade and promote tourism."

With this Government’s policy of promoting tourism, and investing in infrastructure development, increased demand for labour became apparent. Consequently there was further movement of manpower from agriculture to construction and tourism. Chart 2, in appendix Employment by Sector clearly explains the movement of labour out of the Agricultural Sector. In the year 1960, 36.7% of the workforce was engaged in Agriculture, where as in 1970 only 5.36% remained in agriculture. Tourism & Services employed 17% of the work force in 1960, but in 1980 took over 36% and in 1990 38.61%.

The Territorial Report for the year 1970 states:

"The economy of the British Virgin Islands is estimated to have grown at the average rate of 20% per annum over the period 1966-1968 and 60% in 1969 as a result of tourism and growth of construction and related industries. The territories growth rate between 1955 and 1969 was considered to be the highest in the Caribbean."

With this phenomenal growth in the economy and steady increase in tourist arrivals, demand for food increased tremendously. Unfortunately, agriculture was not in a position to take advantage of the market. The result was a steep rise in the imports of food. Statistical abstracts show that the tourists arrivals increased from 16,800 in 1965 to 317,670 in 1990 (Chart 3 in appendix). At the same time the foreign exchange earned was being depleted by increase in food imports. In 1965 the territory’s food import bill was $259,000 by 1990 food imports increased to $16 million.

With the rapid growth in economy came in the affluence in society, and the increase in food imports to cater for the tourists, provided the variety of food. This led to changes in the eating habits. Local diets changed from ground provisions and local meats to imported vegetables, fruits and choice cuts of meats. Also the increase in supermarket trade made it much easier to purchase imported foods off the shelves than going to Saturday morning market. This preference to imported food dealt a further blow to the local production, which was unable to compete either in price or quality or variety.

The other factor which could have contributed to the decline of agriculture is the land value. With the growth in the economy, real estate demand increased and so did the value of land. The opportunity cost of keeping land in agriculture was too high. Furthermore, BVI never did have preferential land values for agriculture. All land exchanged hands at market price. This prevents entrepreneurs from investing in land for agriculture.

With the possibility of importing any quantity of food and being able to pay for it, the local agricultural sector became a forgotten entity, rather unfairly.

3.0  ANALYSIS OF THE EXISTING SITUATION

In the year 1988, the Government of the BVI took a policy decision to revive agriculture as a part of its programme to diversify the economy. Policies were formulated to transform local agriculture from semi-subsistence to a market oriented production system using modern production technologies available for intensive small farm operations. The new agricultural thrust not only looks towards import substitution but also food security and environmental preservation.

In view of this various services were introduced. Training of staff was undertaken, emphasis was placed on vegetable and fruit crop production and a programme was undertaken to provide farmers with basic resources such as land, water, roads, soil conservation measures, farm equipment and extension support.

Figure 2 shows percentage employment of the agricultural sector in comparison with construction and tourism sectors from 1960 to 1990’s.

3.1   PRESENT SITUATION

The performance of agriculture is still not satisfactory. However, some increase in agriculture production, although moderate, has been recorded for the past six years. The increase has mainly been attributed to the following:

i)  The government’s decision to revive the industry as part of its overall programme to diversify the economy by providing basic facilities like mini-dams, water troughs, road catchments, etc.

ii)  Effort of the Department of Agriculture in providing technical advice to farmers, supervision of the distribution of farm inputs and assistance to farmers in loan application to financial institutions.

iii) Linkages with the Tourism sector and health crase worlwide. Making local food fashionable.

The Table 2 below shows the number of facilities available to assist farmers.

Table 2
Basic Facilities Available to Farmers

The factors mentioned above have contributed to an increase in acreage and quantities of bananas, potatoes, cassava, vegetables and fruits. Also, an increase was recorded in livestock production. Quality of livestock has improved and the number of livestock has increased. The tables 3A-C show the trend of crop and livestock production overtime shown and their values.

Table 3
Agricultural Production 1989-1994.

A.   Crop Production

B.    Livestock Production

C.    Poultry Production

Source: Agriculture Department, BVI

The above production tables, indicates that agriculture can contribute much to the economic development of the BVI if the Government can be more serious and remove some constraints and obstacles facing the sector. A number of farmers and officials interviewed have indicated that they can more than double the current production level provided that the main obstacles are removed.

3.2 AGRICULTURAL CONTRIBUTION TO THE ECONOMY

At present agriculture contributes a relatively small percentage of GDP. The 1992 figures indicates that Agriculture, Hunting and Forestry contributed US$2,047,543 to the GDP, which is 0.59 percent of the total GDP of US$344,612,096. The previous year it contributed 0.61 percent, while in 1990 the percentage contribution was 0.62. Thirty years ago when agriculture was the main occupation of the people, agriculture contributed more than 60 percent of GDP. The decline of agriculture had been attributed by the prominence of tourism sector, offshore business services and other tertiary activities which attracted both financial and human resources away from agriculture. By looking at Table 5 below it will be noted that the trading industry/sector in contribution to GDP is the Wholesale and Retail trade which contributed 32.93 percent of GDP, Real Estate, Renting and Business Activity 14.90 percent, Financial Intermediation 13.31 percent, Hotel and Restaurants 11.80 percent.

Table 5
GDP Contribution by Industry 1990 to 1992.

3.3    EMPLOYMENT CONTRIBUTION

According to the Employment and Earnings Statistics of 1994, the total number of employees in the territory stood at 11,413. This is an increase of 1,384 employees compared with 9,982 employees in 1992. Out of 11,413 employees, agriculture sector had 6 employees (those employed by private sector) and about 147 self-employed full-time farmers. Twenty-three staff employed by the Department of Agriculture is not included in this group. They are under the Public Administration and Social Security. The gross earnings of work force from employment, which is also the wage bill of the economy, was $118.6 million, of this amount agriculture paid $48,912 to six employees or 0.04 percent of the total wage bill. This figure of course does not include earnings from 147 self-employed full time farmers. Tables 6 and 7 below shows the number of employees and earnings of employees by industry from 1990 to 1994.

Table 6
Number of Employees by Industry 1990 – 1994.

Table 7
Earnings of Employees by Industry, 1990 – 1994.

3.4    FOOD IMPORTS

In 1994, $23.18 million in food and food products were imported, which is 18.1 percent of total imports. This is an increase of 000 percent compared with the previous years, which was $22.25 million. By looking at the previous years’ trend shows an ever-increasing trend of food imports. The increase in food imports coincided with increasing demand by tourists and the local population in general. The largest categories in food imports bill continue to be meats, vegetables and fruits, and dairy products and eggs. The deficit in agriculture continued to widen notwithstanding the increase in domestic production as it increased by 5.67 percent to $1.94 million compared with the $1.43 million and $1.83 million recorded in 1992 and 1993 respectively. In this case the government should find ways and means to increase the production of agricultural produce in order to reduce dependence of imported food products. Tables 8 and 9 below shows the imports of food products in relation with other imports from 1990 to 1994.

3.5    FOOD EXPORTS

As far as the exports are concerned, BVI normally exports to other countries live animals including fish, sheep, goats and cattle. The value of these exports has increased from US$205,000 in 1990 to US$275,000 in 1994, and increase of about 34 percent. Which means more efforts is needed to boast the production of animal exports. See Table 10 for export figures.

Table 8
Imports by SITC Sections, 1990 – 1994
(US Thousands of Dollars)

Table 9
Percentage Distribution of Imports By SITC Sections, 1990 - 1994

Table 10
Exports by SITC Sections, 1990 – 1994
(US Thousands of Dollars)

4.0   THE GOVERNMENT’S POLICY FOR AGRICULTURE DEVELOPMENT

In 1988, the Government took a policy decision to revive the agricultural sector as part of its overall programme to diversify the economy of the BVI. The goal of which is:

GOALS
To produce in a programmed manner, as much as possible of what we eat thus reducing our food import bill; to improve our forest capabilities, and where possible to export agricultural products.

POLICIES
The objective of the new agricultural policy is:

1. To alleviate the problem of farmers aging by attracting young generations of farmers.
2. To bring all usable land in the territory into production of either orchard crops, vegetables, livestock, poultry and ornamentals.
3. To promote backyard gardening in order to reduce the territory’s heavy dependence on import of agricultural products.
4. To encourage utilization of land owned by absentee landlords.
5. To promote an integrated farming system linking farmers with main outlet for marketing of farm production.
6. To help soil and water conservation by developing facilities, e.g. dams, irrigation facilities.
7. To preserve natural beauty of these islands by encouraging soil conservation measures, forestry programme and beautification schemes.

The agricultural policy is geared towards self-reliance in food production for domestic consumption and surplus for export. The policy has been in use since 1988, the impact of this policy is not very effective because the strategies to implement this policy are not well defined. In other words, agriculture development strategy implementation is at a minimum mainly because of problems earmarked in Section 1.5. However, there was a marginal increase of agricultural produce which means if the Government can put extra efforts in the near future BVI can have tremendous increase in food production. The future development of the agricultural sector will depend on effective agricultural policy and development strategies to implement the policies.

5.0   THE MAIN CONSTRAINTS TO AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

From the findings, the following have come up to be the main constraints to agricultural development in the BVI.

(i)  The topography and shallow depth of topsoil of the BVI.
     The topography of the BVI is dominated by high mountains forming ridges almost in all islands from which valleys slope down to coastal areas. Slopes are very steep in such a way that farming cannot take place there. Where valleys approach the coast, there are areas of comparatively flat land. Actually, most of the cultivation is found on these areas in small-holdings. In this case arable land is limited.

(ii)   Difficulties in attracting labour into agriculture given the high wages paid by other sectors.
     Other sectors are more attractive in terms of income levels and other benefits. Because of this labour has been moving away from agriculture to other sectors where wages are higher resulting in a shortage of labour in agriculture sector.

(iii)   The age structure of the farmer.
     The average age of farmers engaged in agriculture is over fifty years, majority work part-time and there is a low level of literacy among this group. There is also a relatively slow movement of young farmers into agriculture.

(iv)   Shortage of water for sustained production during the dry season and the absence of appropriate dry land farming technology.
     No water distribution system in most rural or farming areas and there is no special rules for farmers. The rainfall is not enough to warrant proper agricultural development. Even water supply to farmers has always been a problem and continues to affect their production.

(v)   Absence of land use plan for agriculture.
     There is no land use plan for the BVI.

(vi)   Absence of an organized marketing system and infrastructure.
     Marketing facilities are far away from the farmers and in most cases, transportation has been a problem. In some areas roads are very poor and most of the agriculture is done on steep slopes where there are no roads.

(vii)   Absence of appropriate technology for management of pests and diseases.
      Majority of the farmers are still using old technologies i.e. poor tools, low usage of fertilizer and pest control etc. Technical advice and training is limited due to shortage of manpower at the Department of Agriculture.

(viii)  Inappropriate technology for reduction of post harvest losses in vegetables and food crops.

(ix)   Lack of funds.
     The budget allocation to the department is not enough to meet the daily expanding obligation of the department. The following table below shows the budget allocation both recurrent and capital expenditure from 1989 to 1995.

Table 4
Budget Allocation from 1989 to 1995.

From the above table it is obvious that agricultural development will remain stagnant if the trend of budget allocation remains like that. The most affected is capital expenditure, which is important for the expansion of the sector and has been receiving less than one percent of the national budget.

(x)   Lack of Data
     Currently there is a problem of data collection. The data available is not reliable because not every thing produced is recorded and vital statistics are not available.

(xi)   The absence of enforced plant and animal quarantine laws.
     This creates the likelihood of importing foreign pests and diseases into the territory.

(xii)   Land Ownership Profile.
     Land available in small holdings.

(xiii)   The absence of legislation governing inspection of meats.
     The absence of this legislation has slowed the sale of meat to the hospitality industry.

(xiv)  The absence of laws to protect small ruminants against strayed animals.

(xv) Critical shortage of foraye for feeding livestock during the dry season.

Despite the above constraints the energizing of agriculture in the BVI in Government action has resulted in the following:

1)   There has been an increase in agriculture production in the BVI. In 1992 the total value of production was $1,427,440 which was 35% higher than 1989 ($1,063,600). This trend continued into 1994. Information on 1995 to present is not readily available, however it is widely expected that because of the damage that was incurred by Hurricane Luis, Marilyn and Bertha there would have been a reduction from 1994.

2)   There has been increased growth in consumer preference for local produce.

3)   An increase in the number of young persons involved in agriculture.

4)   Increased farmer incomes.

5)   Ninety percent self-sufficiency in beef.

6)   Increased exports of Virgin Island White Sheep to the OECS. I

7)   Increased competence of the Department of Agriculture’s staff.

While the impact of this new thrust is widely recognized by the British Virgin Islanders including the farming community, the challenges that agriculture in the BVI face can be summarized as follows:

1.   To increase production of a number of commodities to meet the growing demand for agriculture produce created by the growing tourism industry and an affluent society.

2.   To arrest and reduce the gap between import and export of food commodities in a competitive environment focused on small commercial producers.

3.   To increase the production and marketing of food crops and livestock given the above constraints.

These challenges are not insurmountable in an environment where there is strong policy and financial support for agriculture. The BVI has recognized

7.0   AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES

1)   In order to alleviate the problem of aging of farmers and to attract young generations into agriculture the following measures will be implemented:

a)  Agriculture subject should be part of the education system’s curriculum from the primary to secondary schools and colleges.
b)  Establishment of school gardens in all the schools in the territory.
c)  Create awareness among the youth, that by use of exotic farming technology can be a money making venture.
d)  Strengthen the existing Young Farmer Training Programme and encourage senior students to pursue agricultural sciences for higher education.
e)  Provide price supports to farmers, by guaranteeing the price of production plus 20% profit to each farmer while allowing the market buy at their price.

2)   In order to promote backyard gardening and farming and to reduce food imports the following strategies would be pursued:

a)  Provide incentives to farmers by reducing import duties on agricultural imports.
b)  Continuous training of farmers in improved and appropriate production technology e.g. mulching, drip irrigation, staking, integrated pest management, etc.
c)  Improve extension and advisory services by providing support services such as land preparation, seeds and seedlings, crop spraying, animal breeding, slaughtering of animals.
d)  Promote establishment of fruit tree orchards and vegetables.
e)  Provide agricultural credit facilities to enable the farmers to purchase farm imports such as seeds, fencing, hardware, irrigation equipment, water tanks, etc.
f)  Reduce pest and other diseases.

3)   In order to encourage utilization of land owned by absentee landlords, the following strategies should be taken:

a)  Lease the land to farmers for short-term crop like vegetables and fruit cultivation.

4)   In order to promote an integrated farming syst