Commonwealth Deputy Secretary-General Winston Cox has offered reconstruction assistance to Grenada following Hurricane Ivan earlier this month, which caused more than US$850 million worth of damage. Mr Cox, who visited Grenada on 19 October 2004, held discussions with Prime Minister Keith Mitchell, Finance Minister Anthony Boatswain and their officials on providing help through the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC). The Deputy Secretary-General said the Commonwealth Secretariat can play a role in the plans by the Government of Grenada to establish a national reconstruction and development secretariat in early November. Mr Cox stated that Grenada can benefit from CFTC assistance in the provision of town and country planners, civil engineers, environmental management specialists, in addition to agricultural, tourism and macroeconomic experts. "In my tour of the nutmeg plantations, I saw the extensive damage to the crop. I think the Secretariat can help Grenada acquire dwarf varieties of nutmeg trees for replanting to revive the industry which forms a major part of the country's economy," he said. The Deputy Secretary-General stressed it is crucial for Grenada to rebuild the country and economy by reviving its traditional sectors such as agriculture, tourism and manufacturing. "The Government of Grenada is also interested in developing an oil and gas industry, and would benefit from CFTC assistance through a petroleum expert to help shape policy and devise programmes for development." Mr Cox said the Government of Grenada is keen on strengthening its institutional capacity to deliver good governance and to move ahead in its reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts. "I hope the Commonwealth Secretariat can help Grenada find the silver lining behind the clouds of destruction in the wake of Hurricane Ivan. We are ready to assist the country and its people to find their footing. It is important for Grenada to return to the path of economic growth and development, which was destroyed within a span of 10 hours on one fateful day by the wrath of a hurricane." SOURCE: THECOMMONWEALTH.ORG