PM Gonsalves meets with ACTP delegation

On Wednesday, Prime Minister Dr Ralph E Gonsalves, met with a delegation from the Association for the Conservation of Threatened Parrots (ACTP) that was in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) as part of the homecoming of the SVG Parrot, Amazona Guildingii.

The delegation, headed by Matin Guth, was in SVG to deliver three parrots to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries, Rural Transformation, Industry and Labour that were part of the ex-situ breeding program. The national birds, two of which are just over one year old, and one that is less than a year old were welcomed at a reception held at the Argyle International Airport on Monday, November 4.

Speaking at Cabinet room this morning, Prime Minister Gonsalves thanked the German based Association for the Conservation of Threatened Parrots, this country’s main partner in this regard, for its assistance that forms part of a comprehensive conservation program. He said while this country has systems in place to protect what we have, we must also rely on international conventions, including the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and cooperation from partners such as the ACTP to ensure that we protect our planet and its resources for generations to come.

The SVG Parrot Amazona Guildingii is endemic to this country and has an approximate population of 850 -900 birds in the wild that remains threatened by natural and anthropogenic factors. It is with this in mind that the government embarked on the comprehensive conservation program that included ex-situ breeding with those populations maintained outside of SVG.

Wednesday’s meeting, that was also attended by Minister of Agriculture Saboto Ceasar, other officials from his ministry and a film crew from the British Broadcasting cooperation (BBC), included the presentation of a t-shirt to Prime Minister Gonsalves by the head of delegation Martin Guth.