Several Toshaos from regions eight and nine are complaining about the scarcity of cassava, a staple in Indigenous communities and Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha says he is aware of the situation and steps are being taken.
During that National Toshaos Conference held in Georgetown last week, the village leaders who spoke to Stabroek News blamed changing weather patterns and foraging wildlife (tapirs or bush hogs) as the primary causes for the problems with their cassava crop. The scarcity of the root crop, according to the Toshaos, is adding to an already high cost of living in the far-flung Indigenous communities.
