Published 29 January 2021
Buckie Got It,
Basseterre, St. Kitts and Nevis News Source
TRIBUTE TO DR. KEITH ARCHIBALD
It is with heartfelt sorrow that I learnt earlier this morning about the passing of Dr. Keith Archibald. While the tears of his family and friends flowed, gladness have crept through because of our deeply felt gratitude for the tireless efforts, relentless dedication, and lofty priority Keith gave to food security in SKN.
Dr. Archibald shared his vast knowledge about the intimate relationship between planting and reaping, ploughing the land and a viable irrigation system. He treated Farming as an Art and Agriculture as a Science.
For Keith, linking soil and seed meant more than growing food for everyone. He nurtured a reverence for nature, a respect for the land, and a responsibility for national development.
Dr. Archibold truly believed we are what we eat. His desire was that all must live with our immunity boosted by the quality of local crops we consume. I am grateful especially during this pandemic, when we know that ginger, garlic, green bananas, sweet potatoes, yams, honey, cinnamon, limes dashine, lemon grass etc are packed with wellness nutrients.
Keith’s guidance and assistance in the transition out of sugar was commendable. It marked a vital diversification of our financial planning. As the then Prime Minister, I turned to Dr. Archibold for practical steps on the way forward. His humility, pride, experiences of pleasure and pain through drought and showers of blessings, made his recommendations worthy of implementation.
To the family, as you celebrate his legacy, I comfort you with the knowledge that it lives on in the open fields of farmland across our Federation and in every seed planted for years to come.
For all the ways he has enriched our lives, I pray that his soul Rest In Peace and rise in eternal beauty.
Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas, Parliamentary Leader of the Opposition and PM of SKN ( 1995-2015).
