-as part of mechanisation strategy
The Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) is outsourcing the harvesting and delivery of cane to its factories as it moves towards more mechanisation, Chief Executive Officer, Paul Cheong says.
Sources also told the Stabroek News that the outsourcing to the private sector comes as field labour attrition rates continue to climb and there is a great “shortage of cane cutters at all of the estates.”
In an Expression of Interest in yesterday’s state-owned Guyana Chronicle newspapers, GuySuCo advertised for suitably qualified contractors to provide harvesting and delivery of sugar cane to its factories, through tender RFP FD 001-0025.
The notice informed that specifications and location for the tender opening would be provided in a tender document that could be found on the corporation’s website or bought for the sum of $2,000. However, efforts to access the document from the websites given proved futile as it only has procurement details for contracts up to December of 2024.
This newspaper reached out to the corporation’s CEO and he explained that it was for harvesting for some of the sugar cane crops and that because of mechanisation, it would also be easier done if outsourced.
One source explained that the attrition rate is about 8 per cent for each crop and because of the social changes happening in the industry. “As the sugar workers retire, the replacement by younger Guyanese isn’t happening fast enough because of the competition for labour in other areas,” the source said.
“People are not as excited to cut cane as you have alternatives and so much competition… so younger people are gravitating towards those. Nobody wants to be a cane cutter like their father or grandfather anymore,” the source added.
Another industry insider echoed similar statements saying also that youths in the estate areas are looking for jobs away from home. “We are not getting to attract harvesters like we used to because those that were laid off now are doing other jobs and the younger people are just not interested. We moved to mechanisation and believe that may interest them but we aren’t there as yet, but we are working on it,” the source said.
One person pointed out that in Berbice, huge projects such as the Palmyra Stadium, the Sheriff Mall, a hotel, home renovations, and small businesses being set up, have taken away a “large portion of the field labour force.”
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, has voiced dissatisfaction with the performance of GuySuCo for last year, saying that despite various challenges, the corporation’s results fell short of expectations.
At his year-in-review press conference, Mustapha had stressed that although the corporation encountered significant difficulties, including a severe drought, its production figures remained well below the government’s targets.
While answering a question posed by this newspaper, that GuySuCo’s 2024 sugar production was 47,123 tonnes, which represented a huge shortfall from the projected 70,016 tonnes, the Minister noted that the first crop of the year, which was expected to yield 62,000 tonnes, produced only 7,000 tonnes, a stark shortfall attributed to a variety of factors including stunted cane growth and significantly lower cane-to-sugar conversion rates. “Normally, it takes about 9 to 12 tonnes of cane to produce a tonne of sugar, but due to conditions this year, it required 14 to 16 tonnes per tonne of sugar,” he said.
Despite the challenges, Mustapha stressed that the government was not satisfied with these results and that President Irfaan Ali had made it clear that significant improvements must be made. “The President has conveyed his dissatisfaction with the performance of GuySuCo, and he made it very clear that if the target for the first crop in 2025 is not met, which should be no less than 100,000 tonnes, drastic actions will be taken,” Mustapha asserted.
Looking ahead, the Minister outlined several initiatives aimed at improving production, efficiency, and sustainability at GuySuCo. He emphasised the importance of increasing mechanisation within the sugar industry, highlighting that the manual methods currently used were insufficient to boost productivity. “We’ve brought in technical support from experts in India and Cuba who are working alongside GuySuCo’s management to help address the critical gaps in skills and machinery,” Mustapha said, adding, “The goal is to reduce the cost of production while increasing output.”
According to him, one of the main strategies to enhance GuySuCo’s performance involves implementing double-row planting methods, which aim to optimise land use and boost cane yield per hectare. Furthermore, the corporation is progressing towards shifting from semi-mechanised and manual practices to greater automation, especially in fertilisation and harvesting processes.
The Minister pointed out that thus far, GuySuCo has successfully converted 40 per cent of its land to mechanisation and intends to amplify these efforts in the upcoming year. He also announced that management changes would take place at several estates, with some managers being replaced as part of a reorganisation initiative to ensure improved performance overall. “In the New Year, changes [will be made] in management at GuySuCo at various estates. Some managers will come out of the system, and change around. They themselves are looking to assign people in areas so they can perform better.”
New mechanical harvesters are set to be introduced in the upcoming year, and experts across various fields – including electrical, agronomy, and sugar technology, within the teams from India and Cuba – are now part of the support team working with GuySuCo.
Cheong reiterated that mechanical harvesting was the corporation’s way of moving away from manual harvesting which he said was a strategy to improve performance.