Students and staff at St Catherine High School are a step closer to achieving food security, following the handover of a greenhouse by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The facility is expected to reduce the school's reliance on purchased produce by enabling the cultivation of fresh vegetables on campus for its population of roughly 2,000 students.
The initiative builds on work already under way at the institution, where agricultural science has been introduced as a core subject in grades seven and eight. At the upper levels, students may opt to continue the subject for external examinations.
Interest among older students has risen since the installation of the greenhouse, which forms part of a wider FAO-backed project aimed at improving rural livelihoods through resilient agri-food systems. The programme, funded by the Government of India at a cost of US$1 million, also targeted farming communities across St Catherine.
"The greenhouse is geared towards food security here at St Catherine High School. It can house approximately 1,800 plants, so with this number of plants it is definitely geared towards food security," said Sherene Smith, head of the agricultural science department.
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