COGNISANT of the need to maintain the strong performance of the rice industry, Government, in April, set aside $500M in the 2014 Budget to help the industry maintain its competitiveness.

Agriculture Minister, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy disclosed over the weekend that the money was used for capital projects. He said the “bulk” of the allocation was spent on additional structural works at the Number 56 Rice Seed Factory, which had benefited from ADP/IDB funding in its initial construction phases, to add other structures, including a soil testing facility and silos. The seed facility is expected to commence operation in 2015, and will ensure that rice farmers have access to quality seed paddy.

The remainder of the money, Dr. Ramsammy said, was used to procure equipment — laser units to support land levelling, and combines which would be used for collective operations by rice farmers.

Rice production was at its lowest level in Guyana in the late 1980s due to neglect of the industry, which had seen a lack of sound agricultural policies and programmes, and little or no investment in agricultural infrastructure and in research and training. Today, there are greater investments in agriculture infrastructure, education and training of farmers, and in research; and there are more guaranteed markets as well.

Guyana’s rice production in the final crop for 2014 has brought the year’s production total to a record-breaking 633,000 tonnes. The 2013 production was 535,212 tonnes, which was far above the original target of 413,000 tonnes and reflected a 27 percent increase over the production of 2012.