Dear Editor,
I refer to a letter by Mervyn Williams (Stabroek News, October 25) captioned ‘The continuation of PNC’s “Grow More Food” campaign would have yielded considerable results.’
Mr Williams obviously is unaware of the track record of the PNC in terms of the systematic decline of agricultural production which reduced the country from being the breadbasket of the Caribbean during the days of the PPP’s term in office (1957-1964) to a situation in which there was a severe food deficit. At one stage, both sugar and rice which we today take for granted had to be imported in order to preserve our overseas markets.
I remember the days when farmers, in particular rice farmers, were forced to abandon the lands and seek employment elsewhere, many in the neighbouring Suriname in order to eke out a living, as the prices paid for their produce were grossly inadequate to recover production costs, much less to earn any surplus to feed the farmer and his dependents. I am aware of scores of farmers who had abandoned their lands and sought employment as wage labourers in neighbouring Suriname, a considerable number of whom actually worked in the rice industry of that country. In other words, it was more economical for the farmer to work as wage labourer in Suriname than engage in rice cultivation in his own country.
The decline in the rice industry was partly political and partly due to the incompetence or unwillingness of the PNC regime to seek lucrative markets for the nation’s farmers who were known to be supporters of the PPP. It should be noted for the record that rice cultivation under the PPP was a thriving industry but was systematically destroyed by the PNC. One of the first acts of the PNC/UF coalition government was to cut the subsidies which farmers were benefiting from under the PPP administration. For political and ideological reasons it terminated an agreement to supply rice to the Cuban market, even though the prices obtained were much higher than those obtained on the world market.
Mr Mervin in right on one ground: the food bill for the Caricom region is far too high. Thankfully, Guyana today is in a position to satisfy a significant proportion of that market which is being done in an incremental way. This is as true for our traditional agricultural products as it is for our non-traditional crops.
The performance of the agricultural sector under the PNC was nothing short of dismal. This was so for the Burnham years as it was for the Desmond Hoyte period. In fact both rice and sugar production plummeted to their lowest levels under the Desmond Hoyte administration.
The agricultural sector has enormous potential not only to feed the nation but to supply the regional markets, and in so doing to contribute significantly to the well-being of our farmers and the society as a whole. This fact is recognized by the current administration which is investing substantially in the sector, especially in the area of drainage and irrigation and ensuring that the quality of our products measures up to international standards.
Yours faithfully,
Hydar Ally
