Guyana will now be procuring fertiliser from Venezuela at a price that is significantly reduced from what it was paying suppliers from other countries.

This was disclosed by Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy, who recently returned from a trip to Guyana’s Spanish-speaking neighbour, where he concluded arrangements for the procurement of fertiliser in the form of urea.
In a recent interview, the minister said that the first shipment of 5,000 tonnes of urea will leave Venezuela on August 28/29, but this amount will only satisfy approximately quarter of the needs of local farmers.
However, he said that he expects that a minimum of 50 percent of farmers’ needs will be provided from Venezuela at a reduced price.
Ramsammy explained that the 5,000 tonnes of urea which will be shipped initially is the amount that the vessel can hold, adding that if there was a bigger ship coming in, more fertiliser could have been provided.
Nevertheless, he stated that they are hoping for at least two shipments each year, which will satisfy half of the local demand. However, he added, there may be more than two shipments and Guyana will continue to procure urea from Venezuela as often as possible during the rice crops.
20% LESS
He further advised that the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) and the Guyana Rice Producers Association (GRPA) are tasked with developing a programme for farmers to access this fertiliser at a price less than what they are currently paying for it.
According to the minister, this price will be at least 20 percent less and the fertiliser will be made available first to small farmers and then some of the bigger farmers will also benefit.
Guyana and Venezuela have had friendly relations for several years. The country is the largest importer of Guyana’s rice and has been procuring rice from Guyana at preferential prices since the beginning of the Guyana/Venezuela rice agreement in 2009.