The Ministry of Agriculture is mourning the passing of one of its former ministers Gavin B Kennard.
Minister Robert Persaud, in a press release, said Kennard was a brilliant son of Guyana who, after having earned the AICTA from the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture in Trinidad and lecturing in that country for a brief period, returned to Guyana to take up a position as Marketing Officer within the ministry.
The release said Kennard served at the ministry for the greater part of his career eventually becoming Director of Agriculture. Persaud said Kennard made a tremendous contribution to Agricultural Extension and Education and his scholarship was later recognised by the University of Guyana where the Gavin B Kennard award is bestowed annually to the best all-round student in the Faculty of Agriculture.
The ministry said it remembers Kennard as a man of strong political sensitiveness who worked during the colonial administration and with the early People’s Progressive Party administration. The ministry said the late Dr Cheddi Jagan regarded him as an excellent manager. The release said Kennard also served as agriculture minister in the Forbes Burnham administration and was instrumental in establishing the Mon Repos Agriculture Com-plex which included the National Agricultural Re-search Institute and later the Guyana School of Agri-culture. The country’s continued reliance on these intuitions can be credited to Kennard’s vision and foresight.
Additionally, a press release from the opposition PNCR said news of Kennard’s death has saddened them but they “give God thanks for a life well lived.”
The party said it remembers Kennard as an illustrious son who served the nation as agriculture minister from September 1974 to January 1981 with distinction until his retirement as high commissioner. The PNCR said a grateful nation fittingly honoured Kennard with the Cacique Crown of Honour and it hopes his grieving family is consoled by the knowledge that his life has been one of service to the Guyanese people for which the nation is eternally grateful.
Kennard died in Canada after a period of illness. The ministry and the PNCR extended condolences to his wife Indranie, four daughters and other relatives.
