The agriculture sector is vital to Guyana’s economic development and in light of the El Nino situation being experienced across the country, the Ministry of Agriculture has been adopting measures to mitigate the dry spell.

Irrigated rice field at Karmat, Mahaicony.

Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud and officials from the Ministry and the Mahaica Mahaicony Abary /Agricultural Development Authority (MMA/ADA) held a meeting Monday at Karmat, Mahaicony River, to discuss measures taken to address the El Nino situation which has resulted in the significant drop of water in conservancies across the country.

The Minister noted that a schedule of the routine use of water accessible to farmers has been implemented to monitor water usage and farmers must comply with the schedule. Minister Persaud highlighted that in order for a high level of productivity at the first crop in 2010, farmers need to utilise water available in a controlled and organised manner.

Addressing complains of unfair treatment of farmers and lack of information pertaining to the accessibility of the water, the Minister has set up a monitoring committee comprising three farmers, tasked with communicating with the MMA/ADA and other organisations on a daily basis to gather necessary information and disseminate them to farmers. In addition, the committee will also aid in transparency, since it will report any irregularities to the Ministry.

El Nino is uncommon during this period in the MMA area while other parts of the country experience dry spells. For the past three to four years, the Ministry has been addressing matters of flood in those areas. However, owing to climate change, a dry spell has affected the farm lands, Minister Persaud stated.

He indicated that information emanating from the National Oceanic Administrational Agency, U.S. as well as the World Met Organisation, shows that El Nino may last until March 2010, and therefore the need for proper utilisation and management of water has intensified. (GINA)