Ambassador for the Diaspora Terrence Forrester has said that Grenadians coming home to take part in next month’s Diaspora Homecoming event will be provided with an opportunity to take part in government’s efforts to replant nutmeg and spice trees that were devastated by recent hurricanes.
Addressing a meeting in Brooklyn, New York over the weekend, Forrester told a packed Town Hall audience that Sunday 28th June has been set aside as “Spice Replanting Day” to be done in collaboration with the Grenada Co-operative Nutmeg Association (GCNA) and the Ministry of Agriculture.
He said those persons who will be coming back to take part in the two-week-long event will be asked to participate in the replanting of spice trees.
“We have lost a lot of spice trees and from 2004 not much planting of spice trees took place,” he remarked.
The island’s agricultural sector was devastated by Hurricane Ivan in 2004, and shortly afterwards by Hurricane Emily and in 2025 the passage of Hurricane Beryl which caused tremendous damage on the sister isles of Carriacou & Petite Martinique and the northern section of the island especially St Mark, St Patrick and St Andrew.
Ambassador Forrester recalled that current Prime Minister Dickon Mitchell had given a commitment during the campaign leading up to the 2022 general election in his capacity as Political Leader of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to engage in the replanting of spice trees.
“We can’t be called the Isle of Spice and we don’t have spice trees – so that commitment is now being fulfilled,” he said.
“So what we will do in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture and GCNA – various sites will be identified throughout the country and you will be told where these sites are.
“You can come on out, help plant a tree and then you can also plant a post in there with your name on it and come back in a couple years’ time and see how well it has progressed.”
According to Ambassador Forrester, this can also serve as an incentive for a person living in the Diaspora to come back home each year to wet the tree as part of the growing process.
He also made mention of an event planned as a community initiative that is called “Give Back Day” in which Grenadians in the Diaspora can give back their skills and knowledge acquired overseas over the years to the local community.
He said: “Many of you might be professionals in different fields – Healthcare, Engineering, Skills – whatever it is.
“We have lots of areas in Grenada, lots of opportunities for you to give back your skill, your talent. We are in the process of identifying precisely what areas we are going to be looking at.
“We have beaches that need manpower for cleaning, we have rivers where some of them are overgrown by small trees, a classroom might need painting, a police station may need painting.”
In addition, Ambassador Forrester said that those skilled Grenadians in the Diaspora can choose to participate in a small training session with young people.
The Government of Grenada, through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Export Development announced the holding of the Grenada’s Diaspora Homecoming 2026, a landmark national initiative inviting Grenadians and friends of Grenada worldwide to return home for two weeks of reconnection, celebration, and collaboration.
This landmark national initiative aims to strengthen national bonds and advance shared development goals, recognising the vital role of Grenada’s global diaspora in shaping the nation’s progress through investment, philanthropy, remittances, cultural promotion, business partnerships, and knowledge exchange.
The event will run from June 21 to July 5 and among some of the other major national events to be held will be the National Investment and Business Forum showcasing opportunities in emerging and traditional sectors such as tourism, healthcare, agriculture, renewable energy, technology, fisheries, manufacturing, and real estate.