MINISTER within the Ministry of Agriculture Mr. Ali Baksh, paid a three-hour visit to Ridge Village on Wakenaam Island last Sunday during which he listened to issues raised by residents, offered advice and gave assurances of assistance.
He also exhorted residents to get involved in greater agricultural production, as a means of improving the quality of their lives.
Baksh was accompanied by the Vice-Chairman of Region 3 (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara), Mr. Azam Pasha Mohamed, who acted as a resource person in terms of information.
The outreach was organised by the Government of Guyana and involved various Government officials. The team that visited the island was Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Mr. Ganga Persaud, Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Bishop Juan Edghill and Minister within the local Government Ministry, Norman Whittaker among other Local Government ministry officials, inclusive of Permanent Secretary of the Local Government Ministry, Collin Croal.
They were greeted with much warmth and, at the meeting; however, residents of Ridge indicated that they are keen on reviving agricultural production and would welcome the support of the Ministry of Agriculture towards this end.
It was also highlighted that Wakenaam urgently needed trained agricultural extension officers for both crops and livestock, so that villagers could benefit from effective technology transfer services, which would increase their zeal for agriculture and their production and productivity noting that with adequate specialist support, he opined, the village could greatly improve its agricultural production.
Minister Baksh, in delivering the feature address, said he had found most activities in the village to be subsistence farming.
He stressed that the villagers have to move away from such and embark upon a larger scale.
He highlighted the importance of agriculture and the numerous possibilities of both primary production and processing in urging them not to give up on the land.
He also pointed out that numerous opportunities were presently provided by government for education in both academic and vocational skills and exhorted them to make the necessary sacrifices, so that their children could benefit.
Baksh said that education is the surest way to escape poverty and acquire a better quality of life and he assured that youths from Wakenaam attending tertiary education institutions on the coast, such as at the Guyana School of Agriculture (GSA), would be allowed to return to the villages and share their knowledge and expertise on completion of their training.
Lively interaction
Following a lively interaction with residents, the team handed over quantities of seeds and other products to the villagers.
Wakenaam is an island of about 17.5 square miles at the mouth of the Essequibo River. It was settled at one time by the Dutch in the 18th Century.
Wakenaam is Dutch meaning waiting for a name and, like most others in the Essequibo River, is characterised by green vegetation, blue skies and cool breeze from the Atlantic.
Wakenaam Island has multiple villages which include Maria’s Pleasure, Good Success, Sans Souci, Melville, Belle Plaine, Sarah, Zeelandia, Friendship, Bank Hall, Meerzorg, Caledonia, Free and Easy, Authurville, Palmyra, Maria Johanna, Domburg, Fredericksburg, Noitgedacht, Rush Brook and Ridge.
It has a population of approximately 5,000 people, consisting mainly of people of Indian and African descent.
The economy is based on mainly agriculture, farming is the main occupation and farmers grow rice, coconut and various vegetables.
