The Ministry of Agriculture says many investments have been made to support farmers in areas such as Black Bush Polder (BBP), Region Six, where drainage and irrigation (D&I) has been significantly improved.
According to the Government Information Agency (GINA) this was highlighted at a recent farmers’ meeting with agriculture minister Robert Persaud and Regional Chairman Zulfikar Mustapha at the BBP Secondary School, Mibicuri. GINA said that about $103M has been spent on D&I improvement for farmers in the area through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA). The Water Users Association carried out the works which included maintenance of water course canals and collector drains and the excavation of outfall channels at Eversham, Adventure and Number 43 Village. Other works, such as the cleaning and digging of 30 miles of canals within the Polder, using NDIA excavators, and repairs to pumps were also done. The Regional Administration also carried out drainage works.
According to GINA, recommendations were made for other improvements to be done since there were no concerns about the D&I improvements.
The farmers also spoke about enhancing access dams and they were told that government has recognised this as a necessity countrywide and it is procuring four bulldozers through the NDIA for this purpose. One of the machines will be assigned to Region Six.
The farmers also said that heavy rainfall affected the harvesting of several acres of rice and cash crops. In response Persaud said the ministry will explore the possibilities of providing seeds to help those affected to return to their livelihoods. Additionlly, he noted that farmers should write to financial institutions seeking their cooperation to favourably consider the situation with those who have loans and who were affected by the rainy weather.
GINA also said that reference was made to the establishment of the seed paddy plant at Lesbeholden which is expected to be completed early next year and which will support farmers to ensure better yields. This, along with the investments in D&I, is aimed at boosting production to enable farmers to utilise opportunities available from the increased demand for rice and other agricultural exports.
Farmers also sought clarification on the process that will allow them to benefit from the exemption of Value Added Tax from purchases on tractors and combine spare parts, an arrangement government put in place to lessen farmers’ costs as the cost of production has increased.
Other interventions that have supported rice farmers in recent months include the establishment of a $1B financial facility through the Rice Competitiveness Project to provide them with credit at reduced interest rates. “Through this facility, bulk fertilisers were procured by the Rice Producers Assoc-iation (RPA) and made available to farmers at a time when the price for this input was continually increasing,” the release said.
Additionally, it said that a Euro 1M research and extension grant to the Guyana Rice Development Board is being used to carry out seed production and value-added rice testing activities as part of the Competitiveness Project. GINA also said recent statistics have shown that exports for this year will be the highest achieved over a decade. Exports recorded at the end of November 2007 were 247,111 tonnes which earned the country about US$69M. Exports for the corresponding period in 2006 were 247,705 which earned about US$49M.
