The troubled Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is set to receive some four billion dollars in subventions from the state this year, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh yesterday announced during his budget presentation.
Addressing the National Assembly, Singh announced that the allocated sum will be used for the construction and expansion of the packaging plants at the Albion and Blairmont estates.
“We have also targeted the acquisition of a drying machine to improve the quality of our packaged sugar, and a stick packaging machine to offer a new smaller packet of sugar to meet the needs of premium markets,” Singh said.
The Finance Minister stressed that the allocated sum will also support the anticipated reopening of the Rose Hall Sugar Estate and support the sugar producer’s mechanisation programme rollout and procurement of conversion equipment that will contribute to improved productivity.
Since taking the helm of government in 2020, the PPP/C administration has allocated over $10 billion in plant and equipment along with the rehabilitation of sugar cane fields at all factories. However sugar production has continued to fall and the corporation has been beset by a range of problems.
Government, Singh told the House is committed to the revitalisation and restructuring of the sugar industry. The allocation in the past and present is to support a “diversified and modernised sector, ensuring its sustainability and economic viability.”
