Caption: Kamla Persad-Bissessar
By Sue-Ann Wayow
MORE than 200 former Caroni (1975) Ltd workers have received their land leases after over 20 years since the company closed down.
And more will be given out as the government promises to take care of families affected by the closure.
The ex-employees received their leases in a ceremony held at the Southern Academy for Performing Arts (SAPA) on Tuesday under the theme “Rooted in Resilience.”
The individuals were from Picton 1 Road, Penal and surrounding communities with most receiving two-acre agricultural plots and some residential lots under the Voluntary Separation of Employment Program (VSEP) package.
Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar delivered the feature address at the Sundarlal “Sundar Popo” Bahora Auditorium, the very hall named for a beloved son of the sugar belt, she said.
Persad-Bissessar, the granddaughter of a former Caroni worker, hailed the importance of the sugar industry and the part it played in the economy and culture of Trinidad and Tobago, a company that was closed down on Independence Day August 31, 2003 by the People’s National Movement (PNM) administration.
She recalled the promises made but were stalled due to administrative issues and hardships followed, some even dying without seeing the promised land.
Persad-Bissessar told recipients, “There are those who work at Caroni and there were those who depended on Caroni, the contractors – the cane farmers, we are also working to give them monies that were promised. You are the first of the lot to get the leases so all of the Caroni families will be taken care of.”
She also reminded that from 2010 to 2015, “3,062 two-acre agricultural leases were executed, 3,097 residential deeds executed, 1,764 residential lots distributed, 1,333 queued, 15 residential sites prepared and 8,855 former employees benefited in total.”
Also under the People’s Partnership government that Persad-Bissessar led, the Sugar Heritage Village & Museum was launched at Brechin Castle in 2011, 480 residential leases were given out in 2012 and in 2014, 510 agricultural leases were distributed.
Persad-Bissessar said, “In June 2015, we began final compensation to 3,481 cane farmers to the tune of TT$27 million dollars toward TT$130 million dollars that was owed to the cane farmers. After 2015 as we all know, progress stalled when we demitted office.”
She maintained her fight for the ex Caroni workers as Leader of the Opposition, and in the election campaign of 2025 pledged to settle the $110 million still owed to private cane farmers, a promise to be kept in her second term as prime minister.
Persad-Bissessar told recipients a lease was a key to open doors for security of tenure, access to finance — mortgages, productive enterprise and generational wealth.
Message to youth
She had a special message for the children and grandchildren of Caroni workers, especially the young people of Penal as Tuesday was also International Youth Day.
The prime minister said, “This land is your inheritance. This land is your launchpad. Never be ashamed of your roots. Modern agriculture is as much as science and software as soil is. It includes protected cropping, drip irrigation, cold chain logistics, electronic commerce, and rigorous export standards.
“Your parents tilled the land. You can now scale their work by building applications for packing houses, mastering the greenhouse, turning pepper into premium sauces.”
Claim the acres with confidence, Persad-Bissessar urged.
“Treat your lease as a business, a classroom, and a legacy. If you bring the energy and ideas, my government will meet you with the tools and support to build a more just, resilient, and prosperous nation, where people are winning, the country is progressing, and prosperity is returning.”
Persad-Bissessar thanked both Minister of Agriculture Ravi Ratiram and Saddam Hosein for working to ensure the leases were distributed.
She pointed out the significance of Tuesday with the distribution of leases and the signing of a Product Sharing Contract with Exxon Mobil, after more than 20 years and exactly 100 days since her government has been in office.
