ANSA Merchant Bank, Sure Foundation distribute 55,000 seedlings

Thousands of households in South Trinidad have benefited from a seedling distribution drive supported by ANSA Merchant Bank, through its partnership with the Sure Foundation.

A total of 55,000 seedlings of short crop vegetables and various types of seasonings were distributed to households over the 2021-2023 period via scheduled community drives. Data reveals that for every $1 invested in the programme so far, recipient households have generated $22.50 worth of returns – either through income from sale of the crops and/or through the direct use of produce to feed their families, which offsets the cost of purchasing food.

The company said in a statement, “Our main purpose behind the seedling distribution is to encourage households to grow their own food – especially as we are faced with a high food import bill. Changing national agricultural outcomes is an urgent requirement alongside addressing the aging agricultural population. We find it imperative to get more households involved in agriculture.”

The partnership with the Sure Foundation is directly aligned with ANSA Merchant Bank’s core values, and forms part of its investment in both present and future generations via the work of the Caribbean Natural Capital Hub.

The hub, which is an initiative headed by the ANSA McAL banking sector in collaboration with an NGO, the Cropper Foundation, aims to protect and improve the state of biodiversity and other natural capital assets in the Caribbean, with a view to improving regional resilience to climate change and environmental factors and shocks generally. The hub is also geared at improving livelihoods and the well-being of people of the region, and supporting economic development efforts that are designed along more nature-positive trajectories.

“This agricultural investment provides multiple natural capital benefits or ecosystem services that, in some cases, extend beyond the areas planted,” the statement continued. “These include soil erosion protection, biodiversity support, carbon sequestration and the production of food. Such contributions are a core aspect of the hub’s objectives.”

As ANSA Merchant Bank moves to strengthen its partnership with the Sure Foundation under the auspices of the Caribbean Natural Capital Hub, the company will supplement its current contributions of seedlings with the distribution of fruit trees and mangrove rehabilitation.