Agriculture Minister Pearnel Charles Jr has indicated that in the coming year, the Ministry will allocate funding for programmes that will further address praedial larceny.

This comes as the Ministry has gotten several complaints from farmers island-wide that the entity is not acting on behalf of farmers who have lost approximately $6 billion due to theft annually.

The Minister, however, rubbished that claim and alluded that the Ministry will be focused on building a framework for the projects, such as implementing agricultural wardens under a pilot programme.

In addition, other programmes are being finalized for submission to the Cabinet to determine if they will get the necessary support and funding.

Until then, Minister Charles stated that more farmers need to implement measures to protect their properties. In most cases, stolen animals, such as cows, are left grazing in open areas with no fencing and are easily led away by thieves.