Disabled persons are estimated in the order of one in ten persons and they face daily challenges for their basic human rights and equity of opportunity. Most disabled persons are poor, experience comorbidities, and female. This makes them more vulnerable to severe outcomes which have been exasperated by COVID-19 pandemic, the economic fallout and rise in food prices. In St. Kitts, persons with disabilities have been excluded from national capacity building programs, including those in the agriculture sector.

Teaching agriculture, marketing and related skills encourages home food security, increases self-employment opportunities and income generating skills. The St Kitts and Nevis Association of Persons with Disabilities (SKNAPD), a non-profit group, managed by and for people with disabilities is committed to fostering training opportunities that promote equity of opportunity, independent living and improves the livelihood of persons with disabilities. There is a Women?s Network within the group.

The SKNAPD has a parcel of land in St Peters, St Kitts and is interested in developing the parcel of land as a training venue for sustainable agriculture production. The location will provide persons a safe space, an opportunity for skill development, the ability to independently generate income and increased employment opportunities through agriculture. The project will provide hands-on training using climate smart agriculture production technologies in an accessible environment combined with the special requirements of disabled workers. There will be a ?training of trainers? component where selected persons will be specially chosen to be trained in training others participating in the project. This would help with the sustainability of the project.

The SKNAPD is also a member of the regional Caribbean Community Based Rehabilitation Network (CCBRN) and is interested in using the established garden in the development of horticultural therapy programs. The aim of the programme is to improve the lives of persons with disabilities utilizing people-plant interactions to improve health, increase education opportunities, increase socialization and gain skills to increase livelihood opportunities. The CCBRN comprises of groups and individuals representing persons with disabilities from eight Caribbean countries. The group presently meets weekly to share experiences, training techniques and plan training opportunities. Members of the CCBRN have strong links to the University of Tennessee and have received training in horticulture therapy. Guyana has received training and their programme is approximately 7 years old. They have trained 20 volunteer farmers and have expanded their programme over the years to include the Ministry of Health, occupational therapists and geriatric homes. There are presently four functioning gardens in Guyana where horticulture therapy is practiced. Trinidad has started training where students are taught the assessment, lesson plans and techniques of assisting persons with varying disabilities in gardening. SKNAPD wishes to develop such a programme in St Kitts and Nevis once the garden has been established.

While the UPR Trust Fund financed survey of persons with disabilities in St Kitts and Nevis will establish the demographics for the country, this project will target SKNAPD association?s members and their families, Ade?s Place and the Cotton Thomas Comprehensive school, initially.

The Project is also strongly linked and supported by the Department of Agriculture, IICA, Gideon Organic farmers and individual farmers. The aim of the project is to improve the livelihood and food security of persons with disabilities by creating an urban farm, sustained as a training venue and source of income for their community.