Farmers across Guyana from Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Nine, along with students and other private sectors partners, began training yesterday, in Aquaculture Technology.
According to a Department of Public Information (DPI) press release, this programme was made possible through a collaboration between the governments of Guyana and China.
Ministry of Agriculture’s Permanent Secretary (PS), Delma Nedd, spoke at the opening session of the training course and explained that at the moment, the fishing sector was experiencing challenges which resulted in the country’s fishing resources dwindling significantly. “There is over-exploitation, unregulated and illegal fishing practices,” she was quoted as saying.
Nedd stated that the training course comes at a significant time, as further promotion of aquaculture is greatly needed.
The PS was also quoted as saying, “The promotion of aquaculture in Guyana is of great priority, and we are blessed with land, fresh water and reasonably, favourably good conditions to make aquaculture a significant part of our economic earnings.”
Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ incoming Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ambassador Forbes July, said the imposing and sharing of knowledge and experience was important to further the development of the sector, here in Guyana, the DPI added.
“Here in Guyana, there are possibilities for development of the subsector, with the emergence of viable economic production to supply both the local market and beyond, as well as create opportunities for sustainable livelihood,” July was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, Chargé d’Affaires, Chen Xilai, lauded Guyana and China’s cooperation and friendship, which he says dates back to 1972 when diplomatic relations were established. He noted that since then, exchanges in the areas of health, education and culture have become frequent. Chen disclosed that an assessment team from the Fujian Institute of Oceanography visited Guyana in April this year to conduct a pre-stage field investigation and communication. This was done in order to have a better understanding of the training needs of Guyana and ensure the smooth implementation of this programme.
The DPI also stated that the government, through the various arms of the Ministry of Agriculture, has been encouraging agricultural diversification as a means of mitigating the challenges posed to food production by climate change.
Globally, China has shown an interest in the fishing resources of countries like Guyana.
