By Theresa Goodwin
Farmers, vendors and others who conduct business in and around the Public Market Complex in St John’s, especially on a Saturday, are being urged to adhere to social distancing rules and other measures in place to stem further spread of the dreaded coronavirus.
Senior Extension Officer within the Ministry of Agriculture, Owalabi Elabanjo, issued the appeal yesterday following mounting complaints about overcrowding on the weekends which often attract hundreds of residents to the area.
He said that similar concerns were also raised by the management at the St John’s Development Corporation (SJDC) and the Agriculture Extension Division. SJDC has direct responsibility for the market, Vendors Mall and other high traffic areas within the capital.
“I want to appeal to all the farmers, residents and others who patronise the market on Saturdays to please let us adhere to the very important protocols; let us safeguard ourselves, let us safeguard our food security,” Elabanjo said.
“It is very important that our farmers take very serious caution. Please let us support the effort of combating the pandemic in Antigua and Barbuda.
“Farmers should practice the protocols, not only at the market, but on their farms and any other places where they are interacting with people,” he added.
Antigua and Barbuda has officially recorded more than 750 cases of the virus since the outbreak of the pandemic, more than half of which remain active.