Minister of Agriculture Dr. Leslie Ramsammy has announced that a consortium of local and international entrepreneurs will soon invest in a biofuel project that will take up more than 100,000 acres of land in the Canje Basin.
Dr. Ramsammy made this announcement while addressing a Food and Agriculture Organisation Accountability Seminar last Wednesday, where he outlined what he referred to as “the pillars of the National Strategy for the Agriculture Sector over the next five years.”
The newly-appointed agriculture minister said he would like to see Guyana transform its agriculture “as a choice destination for entrepreneurs,” with industrialization that would facilitate packaging and processing the country’s agriculture products.
In addition, Dr. Ramsammy noted, Guyana’s vast potential could be utilized to cultivate crops as biomass to generate fuel and he signalled that such a project is under consideration in the Canje Basin on the Corentyne.
Ramsammy also identified as priority areas in the agriculture sector, the strengthening of the market information system and technical assistance to review and amend aquaculture policy as well as improvements in institutional capacity to bring about sustainable aquaculture development. He also wants to see improved food security in hinterland communities and remote rural areas as well as increased investment in the private sector.
Against that background, the agriculture minister also identified the need for technical assistance to develop a comprehensive disaster risk management plan for drought and flood, as well as technical assistance for mapping all drainage and irrigation systems in Guyana.
According to Ramsammy, the national strategy for the agriculture sector will see a focus on crops, varieties and breeds since Guyana must improve on the present crops and livestock.
“We must also introduce genetically improved varieties and breeds that can withstand various environmental conditions and provide higher yields,” Ramsammy pointed out.
In this regard, he added, the work of the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI) and the Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA), the lead applied research agencies for agriculture in Guyana, must be supported.
And while noting that Guyana has done well in establishing its farming systems and techniques, he acknowledged that the country’s farm systems and techniques can benefit from modernization.
He also highlighted that in countries with Guyana’s terrain, where agriculture is done in a significant way on land that is below sea level, and there is a high vulnerability to climate change, water management systems are critical.
“We have done a remarkable job in building and maintaining a comprehensive drainage and irrigation system, but this system is still not adequate and its maintenance can be improved,” Ramsammy said, adding that mapping the present system and agreeing on its future development are critical steps.
He also pointed out that much work will be done to ensure proper soil health.
Moreover, he stressed that the issue of transportation and storage facilities would be critical as the country extends its cultivated lands. However, without marketing Guyana will not be able to make agriculture profitable, he observed, adding that it was also important to set up financing mechanisms for agriculture and to develop some form of crop insurance.
