Dear Editor,

As a former Extension Officer of the Guyana Rice Producers Association (G.R.P.A.) I applaud the General Secretary Mr Dharamkumar Seeraj for taking the initative in launching the Agri Magazine for the farmers’ benefits.

I remember there was a publication of a four page Newsletter starting way back in the 1980′s under the late General Secretary Mr Fazal Ali.

The main purpose of that Newsletter was to bring farmers and readers up to date with the latest news and issues affecting the agricultural industry as a whole and the rice industry in particular. It also contained information on global rice sector issues. It aimed to be topical, well informed, wide-ranging, comprehensive, and readable. According to Mr Dharamkumar Seeraj the new Agri Magazine will have a “Farmer’s Mailbox” so the farmers can express their dissatisfaction on any topic and help to advise the R.P.A. in any area to better promote the rice industry.

The Hydrometeorological Office attached to the Ministry of Agriculture should also write articles guiding farmers on the weather phenomenon so they can know when to sow and reap their crops because this is an area where farmers need to be sensitised.

The Extension section of the R.P.A. should help to advise farmers on technical issues through the magazine on the proper use of fertilizers, paddy bugs, plant hoppers, sheath rots, research data, field trials and good seeds etc. Today the R.P.A. has come a long way and has evolved with dynamism with Mr Dharamkumar Seeraj at the helm.

He has taken the R.P.A. that once only survived on faith and transformed it into an entity that encompasses limitless endeavours within a spectrum that recognizes no borders.

I urge the business sector to support and sponsor advertisements in this new Agri Magazine so it can be self-sustaining.

Yours faithfully,

Mohamed Khan