Immediate developments from President Irfaan Ali’s recent trip to India will see expert technical personnel from New Delhi here soon to assist in the agriculture sector where the focus will be on horticulture, aquaculture, sugar and GuySuCo.
The overall aim is increased food production, even as working groups are being established to look at the myriad proposals presented during the trip, President Irfaan Ali yesterday said.
Collaboration and providing support in the area of technology and biotech support facilities, assistance in the oil and gas sector, healthcare including, ayurvedic and wellness research, technology and defence and human resource and capacity building were among some of the other “major areas” that formed the discussions.
“Agriculture and food production was a strong pillar that underpinned our discussions,” Ali yesterday told a press conference he held, alongside some persons from the private sector team that accompanied him on the trip.
He explained that agriculture came to the fore as a key element, given the development aspirations of this country, the importance of food security, and the leadership this country is providing in this area in the region.
On the heels of his return from India on Monday, after having led a delegation of private sector representatives, and visiting the cities of Indore, Delhi, Kanpur, and Bangalore, he expressed the view that while a number of areas of cooperation had been explored between the governments of both sides, it was determined that each country would compose a team that will jointly set objectives and specific targets, as they provide feedback to their respective policymakers.
A Memorandum of Understanding has been hammered out in the area of farming which the two countries will sign on to.
However, in the immediate term, both countries have decided that the focus on agriculture must take priority and as such, key personnel will be dispatched, as relations in other sectors are being mapped out.
“In relation to identifying three areas that we’ll see action soon, I would like to say to you that in every area we have identified, you will see action. Our goal in government was to open up opportunities for the private sector. They have already established many MoUs with partner businesses,” Ali pointed out.
“From the government’s side, you will see technical teams coming in to help us in agriculture, horticulture, sugar or food production system, food technology, biotech facilities supporting agriculture… So those are the areas that we see as low hanging fruits or immediate, in terms of the type of support that you will see,” he added.
India, which focuses heavily on agriculture and is a global producer of sugar, is expected to help government in this sector, as Ali mentioned that GuySuCo was a topic of discussion. That country also prides itself as being the number one producer of spices in the world and one of the largest producers of horticultural products. Its Invest India portfolio also attests to being one of the leaders in global food production.
But immediate plans for the sugar sector will be formalized after the working group on agriculture is set up and there are consultations and planning. Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, will be Guyana’s representative for the working group on agriculture while former PPP/C Minister of Agriculture, Leslie Ramsammy, will focus on the farming industry.
This country has already written to the Government of India and submitted the names of all its representatives for the Guyana/India Cooperation Agenda where Minister within the Public Works Ministry, Deodat Indar will be responsible for technology; Minister of Natural Resources, Vickram Bharrat for energy; Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond for ayurvedic and wellness and natural medicine and development; and Minister of Public Service, Sonia Parag, will be responsible for the area of human resources and capacity building.
On the private sector side, it was announced that deals were made with some being non-disclosure agreements.
Jeweller and former cricketer, Steven Jacobs disclosed that he had entered into a partnership where he will import high-karat diamonds from India for his establishment.
It was the President who informed that Jacobs is also looking to partner with an Indian company to open a jewellery-making school here where the youth especially, can develop that skillset.
Private Sector president, Paul Cheong, said that a number of opportunities are available and he will ensure that his business body is prepared to invest in them.
President of the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA) Rafeek Khan, represented Guyana’s agro-processing sector.
“As we travelled through India, the enormity of industries development was glaring and could be intimidating, by comparing where we are today and where we need to be tomorrow, in order to realise the true potential from our vast natural resources. While India does import some raw materials for its manufacturing, most of its inputs are derived from its own natural resources especially for its agro-processing and construction sectors. As we anticipate future reduction of logistics and energy costs, we need to prepare our manufacturing sector to seize the opportunities by gradually shifting into a secondary economy,” Khan said.
He told the press conference that three “strategic MoUs on this mission which are all low hanging fruit towards the building of industries” were signed.
They are in the areas of waste to energy in the lumber sector, where utilising excess biomass while reducing the cost of energy and improving competitiveness will be explored. Large-scale furniture manufacturing to meet the country’s rapid growing demand in both domestic and regional markets, is another area signed on to, and manufacturing complete radiators to serve several industries, such as automotive, generator and boring machines in Guyana and beyond ,is the other .
“The vast population for consumption of products in India compared to Guyana could make one feel that it would not be feasible to sustain large-scale manufacturing here, but we need to constantly remind ourselves that our market is not just Guyana, but also the entire Caribbean and beyond,” Khan said.
Guyana Invest (G-Invest) head, Peter Ramsaroop, said that the trip was already yielding results as yesterday morning he returned to his office to see that some eight companies had written asking for information on specified sectors, to enable them to make investment decisions.
