Minister Royer highlights MSMEs’ role in boosting food security, exports, and agriculture through finance, infrastructure, and digital transformation.
Dominica: Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries, Blue and Green Economy, Roland Royer, has called for a major shift towards strengthening MSMEs, stating that it is of necessity of the country aims to strengthen its food security and expand agricultural efforts.
The Agricultural Minister delivered this address during the National Accountability Seminar organised by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture IICA on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. This seminar was under the theme “From Local Fields to Regional Markets: Strengthening Food Security Through Trade, MSMEs, and Accountability.”
During his address, Minister Royer spoke of the importance of supporting the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) due to the critical role they play. He highlighted key areas of improvements, including areas of finance, marketing and agricultural infrastructure.
“If we are serious about strengthening food security and increasing exports, then we must strengthen MSMEs. We must help them access affordable financing, we must improve market intelligence and market access, we must strengthen post-harvest infrastructure and pollution systems,” declared Minister Royer.
The Minister further added, “We must assist them in meeting food safety and export certification requirements, and we must embrace digital transformation.”
Royer also disclosed that associated consultancies are providing practical support to improve business planning, financial literacy, operational efficiency and export readiness.
“These interventions align directly with the Government’s vision of creating a competitive, resilient and export-oriented agricultural sector,” declared the Agricultural Minister.
Royer added that the interventions also complement the Government’s investment in the sector, mentioning the National Abattoir, fisheries infrastructure, animal feed mill and many more.
He concluded his address by emphasising the importance of accountability, stressing that being transparent is significant as it provides an opportunity to evaluate and measure progress and for the stakeholders to ensure the resources are impacting the citizens in a meaningful way.