Professor Thomas calls for re-establishment of Agriculture Bank
Professor Clive Thomas addressing the rice conference yesterday
Professor Clive Thomas addressing the rice conference yesterday

PROFESSOR Clive Thomas is calling for the re-establishment of an Agriculture Development Bank to aid the development of the rice industry.Speaking at a National Rice Industry Support Conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre yesterday, Thomas, an eminent economist, reasoned that a bank would be needed to adequately finance development of the industry since the private sector alone does not have the capacity.
Guyana at one time had a bank that supported agriculture development. GAIBANK, a development institution, used to give short and long-term loans to the agricultural and other sectors. It was closed by the former Administration.
The former Administration had claimed, among other things, that the local commercial banks would handle the agriculture credit portfolio of GAIBANK.
The bank aside, Professor Thomas also noted that sound management of the industry can only be achieved through good governance, where members of boards are appointed through a fair and transparent process.
He said integral in the process of sound management is placing greater focus on risk management, pointing out that these are keys issues that must be addressed for the rice industry to be vibrant and more competitive.
Rice farmers for years have been complaining of late payment by millers for their paddy sold.
“Some millers do not pay their paddy farmers on time and a result of that farmers cannot prepare for the next crop. We need to examine all of these problems. A revolving fund has been established but that fund has proven to be inadequate. Last year, the fund was about $5 billion but paddy worth more than $42 billion has been produced,” President David Granger, who also addressed the gathering of farmers, millers and other stakeholders, said.
He related that some persons have come forward with recommendations on the way forward, noting that an idea has been suggested that a reintroduction of an agriculture bank will effectively handle the problem.
Others have called for a stabilisation fund, but he said the Administration wants to look at all the options and see what is most practicable in a Guyana circumstance.
An earlier call
Former Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy, has also called for the re-establishment of an Agriculture Development Bank, contending that it would be a step toward alleviating some of the financial issues in the sector.
He made his position known in July last year at the launch of the Ministry of Agriculture 2013-2020 Strategic Plan.
“The strategy we described has advocated for financial arrangements such as an Agriculture Development Bank, I think that is necessary, but that is a policy direction that the Ministry of Agriculture can advocate, but cannot do. We need a revolving fund arrangement. We need crop insurance, but these are easier said than done, because insurance implies premium payments and who will pay the premium… cause when things are going good, nobody wants to hear about a premium,” Dr Ramsammy had said.
President Granger, in his address to the gathering yesterday, was very optimistic about the future of the rice industry.
“We have a vision for rice and the industry and the contribution that it can continue to make in Guyana’s growth,” he said.
But the President noted that quite unfortunately in the increase of paddy production, thousands of persons, particularly young people in rural areas, are still unemployed or underemployed.
“We have to change this reality by creating industries based on rice production which can add value to rice and employ our young people,” he said.
President Granger stressed that in the near future, through stronger collaboration with the Private Sector, the importance of rice will be further enhanced.
But he said: “We do not wish to usurp the role of the Private Sector, rice production is a private business and we support private enterprise, the Administration does not want to bail out the rice industry.”
He noted that the Government is not inclined to become a banker to exporters and millers, stressing that its role in the scheme of things is to establish a framework to provide a level-playing field so that the industry can prosper.
And this, he said includes ensuring safety, quality, respect for labour laws and assisting in the promotion of market access for producers.

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