The Ministry of Agriculture and the GFA Consulting Group GmbH of Germany on Monday inked an agreement totalling $197 million to foster and enable private sector entrepreneurship into agribusiness.
Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud, during the signing ceremony, pointed out that it represents the further realization of government’s vision to transform the agriculture sector and restructuring the traditional sectors. The Government Information Agency (GINA) quoted the minister as saying, “This component of the project is crucial; it is about building private sector, about building agribusiness capacity. Agribusiness capacity does not exist in these critical areas of the scale and level.”
The contract has a three-year duration and will be undertaken by 15 experts. It is being financed by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) under the Agricultural Export Diversification Programme (ADP), Component One: Private Sector Entrepreneurship into Agribusiness. Persaud said that areas of livestock, fruits and vegetables and aquaculture are three new cluster commodity chains which are being developed from scratch. He pointed out that there is need to look at developing the system so that those involved can access financing, advice and support in preparing business plans, since he noted that there is a shortage in this area.
The minister also told representatives of the firm that the ministry expects first class work and will not accept regular routines. He pointed out that the achievements of Germany, including the size of the country and the state of its economy reflects many achievements and he is hopeful that the company will tailor the project to suit Guyana and will consider the country’s demands and experiences along with those of neighbouring countries Chile and Brazil.
According to GINA Persaud appealed to the private sector to get involved and for new and imminent players to take advantage of the opportunities available. He pointed out that this project demonstrates government’s commitment and to getting the private sector involved in the sector and in encouraging investment.
The minister also said an abattoir will be built that will later be developed to function as a meat processing plant. The activities are being undertaken to build a more dynamic agriculture sector and promote private sector involvement, he said.
Meanwhile, Regional Director for the Caribbean and Latin America, GFA Consulting Group GmbH, Wolfgang Haupt said the GFA has been involved with several projects in Guyana over the past 15 years. The company also has experience with similar projects in the Region which have been successful and he pointed out that the company is looking forward to working with the ministry in completing the project.
IDB Country Representative Marco Nicola pointed out that the Bank has been providing support for several programmes in Guyana. The ADP targets a sustainable increase in the export of non-traditional agricultural commodities and “its purpose is to establish services and institutions for a sustainable increase in the income derived from the export of non-traditional agricultural exports in the aquaculture, fruits and vegetables and livestock sub-sectors including beef, peppers, pumpkins, plantains, farm-grown fish (particularly Tilapia), enhancing the protection of domestic consumers from illness and domestic production from disease and contamination.”
It was recognised that these sub-sectors face several challenges along the supply chain including a lack of suitable volume and breed/varieties and sustainable supply; ineffective sanitary surveillance systems; limited institutional support (legal framework); inadequate abattoir facilities for export purposes; weak technological awareness and business practices; limited research and transfer of technology; limited access to markets and market information and weak phytosanitary systems for expansion in exports.
The main deliverables of the consultancy include management services to three agribusiness chain bodies; aquaculture, fruits and vegetables and livestock, including Strategic Plans and Annual Operating Plans, coordination of the execution of the annual operating plans, advice and legal services to establish the Working Groups as legal entities and financial sustainability plans for each cluster Working Group; Product and market research studies for each of the focus clusters, organisation of technological missions to upgrade agribusiness processors and farmers’ knowledge of modern technologies.
Technical assistance to the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission for the strengthening of public land administration and developing public land database in GIC format is also included in the deliverables along with schemes for access to financial resources and contract farming mechanisms for the disbursement of project funds, and mechanism for linking Working Groups to external sources of funds for export financing and input supply financing.
Technical assistance for the preparation of business plans to support the individuals and firms in the selected clusters in preparing their business plans, including the market, technical, economic, financial and environmental feasibility and in accessing the related services and co-financing and securing the government’s permission to implement these business plans have also been included.
GINA said National Agricultural Research Institute Director Dr Oudho Homenauth, Guyana Marketing Corporation General Manager Nizam Hassan and Permanent Secretary Dindyal Permaul also attended the ceremony.