FIVE groups of farmers last Friday received $10.3M under the Ministry of Agriculture’s Rural Enterprise Agricultural Development (READ) project.

Minister of Agriculture, Dr Leslie Ramsammy pointed out that the integration of small farmers into large scale agriculture is not just an option, but an imperative and a priority.
Dr. Ramsammy noted that the government never embraces initiatives that engage subsistence livelihood; rather it is done to create wealth and encourage investment.
He highlighted that putting in labour and energy will be done by the farmers, and in this case the ministry is assisting these groups and others, with the finance as “seed money” where they will continue to generate funds through profits to sustain their business. He noted that there is no guarantee that there will be additional funds since this money was bargained for by the Government of Guyana.
He congratulated the groups and urged that wealth generation comes from exports and value-added: “Our aspiration should be to have our produce meet on the shelves of supermarkets internationally,” he declared.
Minister within the Ministry of Agriculture, Alli Baksh said that he was happy to see so many women involved in the groups and in agriculture as a whole noting that several other groups are in the making, and it is the intention of government to keep engaging all stakeholders in the process.
He observed that sustainability is the name of the game for these groups and this type of funding is being handed to persons who are serious about developing themselves. He said sustainability of projects means a lot to the ministry, and noted that it is constantly looking for new and emerging markets to absorb farmers’ produce.
At the handing over ceremony, Mr. Ramesh Persaud, Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Private Enterprise Development (IPED) emphasized the need for farmers to be united, and also underscored the need for training for farmers.
Mr. Tappin, a farmers’ representative from the Region Ten Farmers’ Association (RFTA) extended thanks to the ministry for the support as well as for capacity building training that was given to them.

Beneficiary groups
The groups that received funding are: Lower Akawini Farmers’ Association and Pomeroon Women’s Agro-Processors Association of Region Two, Central Mahaicony-Perth Village Farmers’ Association and Young Women’s Christian Association of Region Five and the Region Ten Farmers’ Association.
READ is a six-year project funded by Government of Guyana and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), as a loan/grant of US$6.9M. The project is being implemented in Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 10.
Rural Enterprise Development is a component with two major areas of activity – Market Development and Rural Enterprise Development. The target groups are male and female rural households, women-headed households, women, youth and Amerindians communities. Also, small scale male and female non-traditional farmers who have an average of five acres under cultivation and depend on farming as their major source of income, as well as male and female headed farm families that have generally been unable to participate in the synergistic benefits of integrating production, processing and marketing of their produce.