Rice farmers in Abary and the Mahaica-Mahaicony stand to benefit after the Mahaica, Mahaicony, Abary-Agricultural Development Authority (MMA-ADA) completes repairs to agriculture infrastructure.
The Department of Public Information (DPI) in a release on Wednesday said that the MMA-ADA has received $98 million to conduct urgent repairs to drainage, infrastructure and dams. This allocation is part of the $300 million earmarked by Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, to be used for emergency works.
The work to clear the channels in the scheme which includes 252 drains is being executed by the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) in partnership with the MMA-ADA. It is expected to be completed by the end of October or early November.
According to the DPI, the $98 million will be utilised in two areas; $90 million for drainage works and $8 million to upgrade dams in three phases of the scheme.
In an interview hosted by the MMA-ADA, Mustapha stressed the importance of the MMA-ADA to the nation.
“I think that we as a Government will ensure that we maintain this scheme. This scheme here will play a very important role in the future, not only in rice but cash crop and cattle rearing.”
MMA-ADA engineer, Mahendranaught Ramjit, said the current works will boost the drainage capacity of the scheme and make a major difference to farmers.
“This project will benefit approximately 96,000 acres of rice land in the area and over 2,300 farmers, families within the Abary Berbice and the Mahaica-Mahai-cony block,” he said.
Ramjit added that two graders are in the Abary-Berbice block, two are in Mahaicony, and two are in the Mahaica Block and these will prepare access to assist farmers in taking out their crops and ensure they are no losses due to the inadequate access in some areas.
He also said the main access dams which allow farmers to transport paddy to the field were the first to be rehabilitated. The engineer urged rice farmers in the scheme to be mindful of the cost of repairing the roads and dams in the scheme and to exercise care during wet conditions to preserve the dam.
DPI also stated that 84 persons were hired to manually clean some of the trenches in the scheme. Emergency works were also executed to clear clogged drains and channels in the various West Berbice communities that are often affected by flooding.
