The government is collaborating with a team of scientists from the Morocco International Cooperation Agency (AMCI) and its National Agricultural Research Institute (INRA) to speed up the digitisation of soil data.
A team from the two entities was recently in Guyana to present, explore and assess the impact of the Soil Fertility Map Project, according to a press statement by the Ministry of Agriculture. They were expected to meet with officers from the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA), the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), and NAREI as well as conduct a series of field tests.
Data on soil types, description, crop suitability and chemical data such as organic carbon are a few areas that the governments hopes to digitise.
According to the release, the project will involve extensive soil data exploration activities to build an inventory of soil information using local soil datasets and will last for four years. It will also involve the collection of information as well as the development of a methodological framework for reviewing and updating soil data including soil organic carbon, after which, a platform will be developed that can be used by farmers to guide their cultivation.
The team paid a courtesy call to Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha to discuss the scope of the project.
During the meeting, Rachis Moussadek of the AMCI said that the project was structured into different components.
“The first component, which is very important, will see us gathering information about the soil and its fertility. This data will be compiled in a digital format that can be used by policymakers. This data will assist farmers with receiving better productivity and efficiency,” he explained.
Mustapha said the project will be a critical one as there are thousands of acres of land in Guyana that the government is looking to bring under cultivation which will need effective soil nutrition.
“In Guyana, we are using approximately 80,000 metric tons of fertilizer annually. With this project, you can visit the areas where we are looking to bring virgin lands under cultivation and determine what inputs are needed to do so. We started the cultivation of corn and soya in the Intermediate Savannah. If we are to increase production we need to have effective soil nutrition in that area. We have thousands of acres of land that are available. We have to make those lands arable so that we can not only plant corn and soya but other crops,” he was quoted as saying.
Since taking office the government has stressed that technology will play an integral role in the agriculture sector. Mustapha has said that technology was needed to improve production and expand the sector. He stated that Digital Soil Maps (DSM) for selecting sites where data on the full environmental variability including soil forming factors, latitude, longitude, soil depth, time, and land use history is also required.
Mustapha also said that the government is working to strengthen the quality control of the National Agriculture Research and Extension Institute’s (NAREI) Soil Chemical Services Laboratory, through the rehabilitation of physical facilities and instrumentation.a
