The Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary-Agricul-tural Development Authority (MMA-ADA) at Onverwagt, Region Five yesterday received a $110 million amphibious excavator to aid in the efficient delivery of services for the area, a Department of Public Information (DPI) release stated yesterday.
This excavator is suited to conduct work in wetland areas such as dredging, vegetation removal, habitat restoration, shoreline stabilisation and environmental conservation projects, the release explained.
It was presented by Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha during his outreach to both regions Five and Six.
While at the MMA-ADA compound, Mustapha noted that this is the sixth machine to be added to the fleet, and will better be able to handle the drainage and irrigation needs of the region.
“So, we have a fleet of machinery here that the agency can use to desilt the canals, keep them clean and ensure that the dams are clean. I was made to understand that they have 740 miles of canal in this entire Onverwagt scheme.”
According to the Minister, those dams are in a state of readiness due to the investment in equipment which in turn has been making the work of the agency easier. The excavator will also be used to clear the 650 miles of dams that are found in the scheme.
The MMA-ADA has been working assiduously to clean and clear lands to advance agricultural development.
“When I became Minister of Agriculture and I first visited this scheme it was in a very deplorable state. We had dilapidated machines that couldn’t function. However, today we can boast of the improvements that we are having in the scheme,” Mustapha remarked
According to DPI, as a result of these improvements and the investment in the machines, the MMA-ADA has managed to plant almost 85,000 acres of rice this season which will be harvested within the coming weeks.
The agriculture minister also disclosed plans to cultivate another 100,000 acres for the new season.
Since the government reduced the land rental and drainage & irrigation charges from $15,000 to $3,500, farmers in Region Five have managed to save close to $1.3 billion, the release added.
