THE Mara Agricultural Enhancement Project (MAEP) was officially commissioned yesterday by Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Norman Whittaker, at the Community Centre, Ma-Retraite Scheme, East Bank Berbice.

MAEP is a US $94,500 venture implemented by the Mara Farmers’ Association in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, the East Berbice/Corentyne (Region 6) – Regional

Democratic Council; Mara Community Development Council, Inter-American Institute for Co-operation on Agriculture (IICA) and, the Caribbean Local Economic Development Project (CARILED).
The project seeks to provide farmers with a multi-purpose mini-excavator for installation and maintenance of interior, exterior, major and minor canals for drainage and irrigation, and also to provide training for farmers in areas of: good agricultural practices, new production techniques, small farm management and, post-harvest handling of crops.
Minister Whittaker, in his address, stressed the need for enhancement in production and reminded the gathering of farmers that Guyana was once the breadbasket of the Caribbean, where the 7 Cs – cassava, corn, cocoa, coffee, coconut, citrus and cattle were the main export products.

“Guyana is blessed with significant natural resources and the MAEP aims at mechanising and improving technology that is used to assist in quality production, so that you can be competitive in the national and international market,” he explained.
The Minister called on the farmers to recognise the importance of continuous training and also to perceive agriculture as a business and not just a subsistence way of life.
“As I join with you in supporting the efforts of the Governments of Canada and Guyana, I want to remind you that once you can deliver quality goods at affordable prices, you will remain in business; there is a need to provide goods that consumers want, at fair prices,” he advised.

ROLE OF CARILED
CARILED is funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, Canada, formerly the Caribbean International Development Agency (CIDA). It is a six-year programme which was launched in May 2012, and, is being implemented by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), in partnership with the Caribbean Association of Local Government Authorities (CALGA), the Caribbean Forum of Local Government Ministries (CFLGM) and, the Commonwealth Local Government Forum (CLGF).

The programme, focuses on Local Economic Development (LED) in the Caribbean and aims at partnering 50 local government authorities to support the growth and development of 500 Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
Councillor of the city of Toronto, Canada – Michael Thompson, elaborated on the benefits of partnership and called on farmers to exploit the opportunities that are given to them in becoming sustainable.
“It is important for you to know that our collaboration helps you to be more productive and enables you to develop your expertise, which you can transfer to other (agricultural) ventures,” he implored.
Meanwhile, Director of CARILED, Alix Yule, said that the people of Canada believe in the benefits of technical and professional exchanges; she then added, “Volunteers from Canadian municipalities come to the Caribbean to work with your people, and help you to attain your goals within your communities; the Mara Farmers’ Association has done well to overcome the many challenges and be able to embark on a new vision.”

MARA FARMERS’ ASSOCIATION
The Mara Farmers’ Association was formed in June 2013 and registered as a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) by community members of the Mara Community Development Council (MCDC), with a mission to mobilise, pool and invest sufficient resources for the improvement of the livelihood of farmers, and community economic development in a sustainable way.
Region 6 Vice-chairman Bhupaul Jhagroo, who hails from Mara, expressed his delight at the implementation of the project. He said, “Farmers have beckoned for this project for quite a while and today we are seeing the reality of it,” adding, “My only regret is that this project has come on stream after a number of farmers have abandoned their community …. I hope they will return in the near future and re-develop their (farm) lands.”
“I want to commend CARILED and the Ministry of Local Government for this venture,” he concluded.
The forces of globalisation and international competition are real, and the adoption of new technologies and modern agricultural practices is the way forward for successful agriculture business, according to the Vice-president of the Mara Farmers’ Association – Daniel Warde.
“Special thanks to the Government of Canada and CARILED for financing this project, and kudos to the Ministry of Local Government for endorsing it,” he commended.
Following the formal commissioning ceremony, Minister Whittaker and the Canadian officials then proceeded with cutting the symbolic ribbon at the garage where a mini-excavator will be parked. The Minister and team then toured a citrus farm in the scheme, to observe the kind of farming activity that is taking place and the impact of the MAEP.
Among those in attendance at the event were: Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development – Collin Croal; Dhanraj Singh (National Co-ordinator), Olaf Fontennelle (Regional Programme Manager) and, Satya Dayaram (Local Development Officer) – all of CARILED.

(Michael Khan)