Dear Editor,
The indications are that the rice industry is slowing down as a result of both internal and external factors as well as mismanagement. Rice farmers are faced with a further price drops from $4,000 to $ 1,000 for a bag of paddy, thus triggering a big picketing exercise in front of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) Branch Anna Regina and the Regional Administration of Region Two, on Wednesday, April 17.
The question is what the government intends to do in dealing on a long term basis with the rice industry crisis, the price problematic and the security question of the farmers. These issues clearly could not justify the continuation of the practices by the millers, the Ministry of Agriculture and the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) and demand that alternative strategies be implemented.
The government and Guyana Rice Development Board need to address a wide range of matters, such as marketing, a sustainable production system, post-harvest management, product development, value added and the future of the rice industry. If they did, this would indeed be a boost for the rice industry.
During 2001,the Government of Guyana and Brazil conducted bilateral trade negotiations with a view to enhancing trade between the two neighbouring countries. As part of the negotiations, a list of products to be traded had to be presented by each country. On Guyana’s list rice and paddy were one such product, but to date Guyana has never capitalized on that market.
The outlook for this crop’s paddy price is quite uncertain at the moment and a further decline in the price is tentatively forecast.
The final outcome will largely depend on the timely intervention of government to rescue the farmers from the banks , so it is too early to make a definitive assessment of the situation. However, at present farmers are not recovering their total costs. The reality is that rough times are ahead.
Yours faithfully,
Mohamed Khan
