Dear Editor,
The Guyana Agriculture Producers Association (GAPA) and other crop farmers take umbrage at the comments and insinuations of Dr Kenrick Hunte’s letter (‘Guyana should re-establish an agricultural development bank’ SN, December 14) and the Kaieteur News’ Peeping Tom column. The other crop farmers in this country are hard working and ingenious in their endeavours to provide affordable food to those like Dr Hunte and Peeping Tom.

Farmers have expressed their disgust at some of the comments made regarding the sector, but will not be deterred in their efforts to maintain Guyana’s food security.

The critics seem to have forgotten the reasons for the launching of the ‘Grow More Food’ campaign, which was an initiative and proactive measure to combat the global food and financial crisis. Today, Guyana is unaffected by the global food crisis, testimony to the continuous increase in production and resilience of our land tillers, the farmers.

The Guyana Agriculture Producers Association with support from the Ministry of Agriculture has been working continuously with farmers across this country to provide training, technical assistance, planting materials and other support to encourage farmers to produce more for our sustenance and to benefit from the opportunities derived from the global food crisis through exports.

Peeping Tom and the other critics are grossly underestimating the strength of our farmers and the agriculture sector. Peeping Tom alluded to the lack of manpower, which is just a figment of his imagination as GAPA and other agencies within the Ministry of Agriculture have been mobilizing and working in farming communities and there has been a marked difference. However, Peeping Tom like Dr Hunte, chose not to recognize the improvements within the sector. Hence, we would be willing to accommodate them during our visits to farming communities to have a first-hand assessment; seeing is believing.

Further, the ‘Grow More Food’ campaign is a continuous initiative to give farmers the necessary boost and support for continued cultivation and expansion. I challenge the critics to investigate the amount of new lands that have been brought under cultivation, accompanied by the necessary infrastructure development and services.

Global agriculture is facing many challenges and GAPA is committed to working with other crop farmers and interested stakeholders to persevere and deliver wholesome and affordable food to the Guyanese public and further afield.
Yours faithfully,
Nandlall Steve Mangal
National Coordinator
Guyana Agricultural
Producers’ Association (GAPA)