OVER the years, the Government of Guyana has made massive investments in the agricultural sector. The millions of dollars spent on pumps, drainage and irrigation systems, drying floors and training facilities have been invested to create favourable conditions for large and efficient agricultural production. We must now ensure that we get real benefits from that investment.
We must act urgently to remove the many problems which have in the past hampered agricultural production. One of the most of these is the problem of water management in all regions. We have not yet acted on the issue of a proper water schedule systems, nor have we acted on the problem of idle and inefficiently rangers. We must do so urgently. And the Minister of Agriculture must ensure that the administrative, managerial, financial and other supportive arrangements are properly established or improved to stimulate increases in production.
To create and sustain stable and ever-expanding systems, we have to build a strong, base with the farmers. All employees must develop awareness that they are part of the management structure of the entity in which they work. We are judged by what we say and what we do. Any action or behaviour pattern on our part which hinders production or reduces efficiency belies any claim on our part to care for the farmers. Unnecessary absenteeism, misuse and abuse of public property and all other kinds of irregularity, vandalism, malingering all these things hamper increased production and militate against the achievement of an organization economy.