Agriculture spokesperson for the People’s Progressive Party and General Secretary of the Rice Producers Association Dharamkumar Seeraj is calling on the Agriculture Minister to enact concessions that would ease the financial burden faced by rice farmers and millers.
At a press briefing held at Freedom House on Wednesday, Seeraj noted that the recommendations made by the PPP on ways to lessen the impact of low rice prices were not “ingenious” and in fact the proposals mirrored what was already done by the APNU+AFC government in the mining sector.
“These are not ingenious ways. They are actually already doing it for the mining sector what is wrong with merely (conferring) that to the rice sector? They said to cushion the impact of falling prices in the gold, in gold and mining they have implemented a number of measures. Farmers are actually getting half as much as they used to get (for rice) 50% less…now that is a dramatic impact on their income and their ability to survive.”
He said that the government could make moves to suspend payments for land leases as well as drainage and irrigation charges. Simultaneously Seeraj recommends that the removal of all taxes and duties on imports for the industry including machinery and spares be implemented immediately.
He said that farmers would greatly appreciate the removal of duties on fuel as the cost of fuel heavily impacts the cost of production.
While he advocated heavily for duty-free concessions, Seeraj said that while the government granted concessions the Guyana Rice Development Board could do its part to implement minimum export prices for paddy and rice that could be adhered to industry wide.
“Implement minimum prices for export of rice and paddy so as to protect Guyana’s industry. Lots of millers and exporters are now fighting one another in Guyana as against Guyana operating as a unit to compete with external competition…Some companies are actually signing up large contracts for very low prices and some of these prices are way below world market price so in the absence of a regulatory fashion and policy arrangement the industry is operating in a chaotic manner, chaotic manner to the extent that our industry I feel is being robbed of essential revenues that could have addressed the concerns of millers, exporters and our farmers,” he stated.
Seeraj said that lack of access to markets is becoming alarming. Agriculture Minister Noel Holder was reported in the state media as stating that countries were “lining up” to purchase Guyana’s rice.
He additionally accused the opposition of making political noise, contending there was no crisis in the rice industry.
As the minister was reported as making those statements neither he nor the GRDB has released any information on large scale markets that were recently acquired that could possibly replace Guyana’s former Rice Agreement with Venezuela.
Holder downplayed the impact of the Venezuela deal stating that it only accounted for 30 percent of total rice exports. “If Venezuela accounts for 38% of exports … it accounts for about 75%-78% of export earnings and that is the significance of the Venezuela market so whichever market replaced the Venezuela market by quantity will fall way short of replacing Venezuela in terms of value,” Seeraj stated.
While 2015’s Rice Agreement with Venezuela was valued at US$113M, Seeraj stated that Guyana only shipped US$42M worth before the deal was brought to a close.
Seeraj told members of the media that millers and farmers have complained to the RPA that export deals are being signed for as low as US$150 to US$350 per tonne of rice. He said that the GRDB has not been accommodating in releasing information and as such he has been unable to substantiate these claims by farmers and millers.
Stabroek News has reached out repeatedly to the General Manager of the GRDB Nizam Hassan to comment on the current status of the rice industry inclusive of the harvest and new markets to no avail. Hassan on Wednesday told Stabroek News that he would contact the newspaper with information but failed to do so.
Stabroek News requested information on marketing strategies from the Chairman of the GRDB Claude Housty as he was appointed, according to the Minister, due to his “marketing expertise.”
Housty is currently out of the country and is not expected to return for a couple months and has yet to reply to the Stabroek News via email on what plans and direction the Board of Directors have devised for the industry.
