Supporters at a PPP/C meeting at Meten-Meer-Zorg, West Coast Demerara were last evening reminded of government’s plans to develop the rice and sugar industries and told of a price stabilization fund for paddy farmers.
President Donald Ramotar again announced that $20 B would be spent to modernize the sugar
industry and that machines would be used to cut canes.
He told the large gathering too that “we would spend money to retrain our workers so that they can continue to make a good living from the industry itself…”
According to him, during his visit to India, which has leading technology with regards to sugar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to assist with financing and to modernize the industry and increase its efficiency.
That, he said, would help to recover more sugar from the cane and to help with financing. Ramotar said too that government also plans to make major investments in the rice industry, noting that production has moved from 90,000 tonnes in 1990 to 600,000 tonnes this year.
The president said that “we have to add value there too” and that an Essequibo farmer has already started to make breakfast cereal from rice.
He mentioned promises by Turhane Doerga from the APNU+AFC coalition who said he could pay $9,000 per bag of paddy when he in fact owes a lot of farmers.
Ramotar also spoke about online courses that would be offered by the University of Guyana, enabling persons to earn degrees from the comfort of their homes.
Minister of Housing, Irfaan Ali told the large gathering that the farm-to-market access road would be developed so as to ensure more efficient and reliable access to land. This, he said, would enable farmers to have a faster flow of production.
He said government has planned to remove the taxes for fertilizer and would “implement a floating taxation system on fuel so that if the price goes up we’re going to remove the taxes for the rice farmers.”
They would also “implement a price stabilization fund that would take away the unpredictability in pricing and would ensure a more timely and efficient payment system for the rice farmers.”
Ali said too that government would work with the commercial banks to develop an assistance programme for cheaper financing.
He urged the enthusiastic crowd to give the PPP/C the “grandest majority in the history of elections…”
