THE Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) has pledged to continue collaborating with the residents of Tapakuma and with local partners to ensure that the recently re-commissioned cassava-processing factory remains viable and sustainable.The Rising Sun Agro-Processing Facility at St Denny Village Tapakuma in Region 2 (Pomeroon/Supenaam) was re-commissioned by Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder last week.
The facility had been opened in 2007 following studies on cassava, which indicated that the industry had untapped potential.
These studies were done between 2005 and 2009 and the first one was: Actual and potential market demand for cassava in Guyana and the second was Risk management and finance along the cassava value chain in Guyana.
The first commissioning was done with financial assistance from the Kellogg Foundation, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the Government of Guyana and IICA.
The facility, due to a number of constraints, became non-operational in 2011.
During a re-commissioning of the facility, IICA country representative Wilmot Garnett disclosed that even before that IICA had, since 1998, supported the Ministry of Agriculture by providing planting material to Tapakuma for plantain and cassava.
He noted that the cassava industry at Tapakuma had not been without challenges.
These included: insufficient cassava to meet the demand for optimal factory production, loss of markets due to inconsistent supply, need for scale-up of machinery and management issues – clearly defined role and responsibilities of the stakeholders.
IICA in collaboration with the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute (NAREI), the New Guyana Marketing Corporation (NGMC) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) made recommendations to the village council and the factory operators to place corrective measures that seek to secure the viability of this industry.
The recent studies conducted highlighted specific products for development and marketing. As a result, the re-commissioned project will be focusing on garlic-flavoured cassava bread and carsreep.
In 2014, the Rural Enterprise and Agricultural Development (READ) project allocated Gy$3.378M for the refurbishment of the Rising Sun Processing Facility. These funds were disbursed through a partnership between the Institute for Private Enterprise Development (IPED) and the village council, with IICA providing technical oversight to assist in meeting factory compliance.
Garnett said: “What you see here at this facility now is the direct result of this investment and collaboration. IICA’s continued commitment is to ensure that small producers/entrepreneurs, especially women and youth, are more effectively integrated into national, regional and international markets.
He added: “We will continue to collaborate with our partners to agree on the most practical way forward to address the gaps identified, and to work to ensure the viability and sustainability of the cassava industry here at Tapakuma.”

By Clifford Stanley