The current rice crop is one of the largest ever under cultivation and promises to be yet another very productive one. But according to Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy, the industry is under stress as a result of shortened rainfall which has resulted in a shortage of irrigation water, particularly in certain administrative regions which do not have the facility of a conservancy and therefore have to depend solely on pumping.

Dr Ramsammy pointed out that owing to the dry weather there is a severe water shortage throughout the country, but particularly, in Regions 5 and 6. “But we are making various interventions because, at this very moment, about 70,000 hectares of rice have already been put under cultivation and we expect some more land to be cultivated,” he stated.
The minister indicated that the current weather pattern is dominated by the neutral condition, which means it is likely there will be either a normal or below normal amount of rainfall. Presently, though, it seems as though the pattern is below normal.
He added: “We will have periods of very dry weather and that is going to be interrupted by some periods of heavy rainfall which creates a problem for us. We don’t have enough water and the thing is that, if we allow too much water into the system from the irrigation canals, we have to ensure that we preserve and don’t use it all one time.”
Historically, in Guyana the weather has been a major factor with respect to agricultural production, particularly with sugar and rice.
However, in the long gone past when the weather pattern was deemed regular and predictable, it did not create much of a problem, but in recent times with the advent of global warming and climate change, the weather pattern has become very irregular and unpredictable posing a severe challenge to the agriculture sector as frequently we have too much rain or a prolonged dry season.
This is something that our agricultural experts will have to take a long and hard look at, and come with solutions because, from all indications, this irregular weather pattern would be here for a very long time.
Perhaps we should examine the possibilities and feasibility of establishing conservancies in those regions where there are none, because while pumping of water is fairly effective it is very costly and it is better to find a long-term solution.
Dr Ramsammy noted that Regions 2 (Pomeroon/Supenaam) and 3 (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara) are both managing better as it relates to getting irrigation water.
He said Region 2 gets mainly from the Ituribisi and Tapakuma Lakes, which comes from the Pomeroon River through Dawa pumps, while Region 3 is supplied by the Boerasirie Creek and conservancy.
He said in Region 6 (East Berbice/Corentyne), irrigation water comes solely from pumping, because that region does not have a conservancy as other regions.
He said most of the water for Region 6 has to be secured directly from the Canje River. However, they have to be careful when doing this because, if too much is taken, it could risk salt water entering the fields.
It is a well established fact that the main pillar of agricultural production is proper drainage and irrigation, therefore we have to constantly find innovative and creative means to improve our drainage and irrigation systems, especially in light of the global warming and climate change phenomena. Of course, doing this will not be an easy task because of the complexities of the challenge. But we must find long-term solutions because it is an imperative and not an option.
However, despite the extreme challenges facing the industry it has been performing excellently in recent years as last year saw some 422,000 tonnes of rice being produced surpassing the target of 412,000 tonnes. This year promises to be another successful one, but we have to ensure that every aspect of the industry is managed well, especially our water management which is so crucial to the success of rice production and agricultural output on the whole.
One of the more recent encouraging developments for the rice industry has been the production of the Bengal Aromatic Rice which has done well on the local market.

As a result, Ramsammy said an even larger supply is expected to be produced during this crop.
The minister said only a small amount of the unique species was produced in the first instance, with only one farmer cultivating it on approximately 60 acres.
This is another avenue for our resilient and dedicated rice farmers and they should grab the opportunity that has presented itself.