PRIME Minister Moses Nagamotoo yesterday commissioned two new drainage pumps in Berbice, which he said will help boost agriculture production in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne).
One of the pump stations, which costs $310M, was commissioned at Gangaram Village in East Canje, while the other, in the sum of $277M, was commissioned at Number 43, in the Joppa, Corentyne area. The commissioning saw in attendance several high-ranking officials from the ministry of agriculture, including Minister Noel Holder, and Region 6, as well as Corentyne residents as the PM started the pumps that will significantly ease flooding in the communities of Gangaram and Joppa and surrounding areas.

The 200cusec (cubic-feet-per-second) pumps that were purchased under the India Line of Credit, when combined, will drain over 17,350 acres of farmland, and bring relief to GuySuCo (Guyana Sugar Corporation) lands under cane, hundreds of rice and cash-crop farmers, as well as residents in their respective communities.
The Ministry of Agriculture, through the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority ( NDIA) was the executing agency that utilised the services of E&A and CEMCO as consultants for the Gangaram and Joppa project respectively, both of which were done by the contracting firm, Rupan Ramotar Investments.
DREAM COME TRUE
Braving the rains, the Prime Minister declared open the pump stations, and in his address said events such as these were like a homecoming for him.
He explained that it was a homecoming in the sense that not only were the projects in Berbice, but their realisation was something that’s close to his heart, in that not only will they benefit the people who are close to him, but more importantly, it’s all part of a bigger dream he’d shared some time ago with the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan.
That dream, he said, had to do with being able to drain thousands of acres of land in a short period of time, and see the Canje Creek being used for both drainage and irrigation purposes, and become the network that links the agricultural sector, from Canje to Moleson Creek.
In urging everyone to play a part in the maintenance and safekeeping of the new facilities, he said it was equally important to do likewise for those that were there before.
He also mentioned in passing that he was well aware of the incident whereby three pumps were sabotaged by unscrupulous characters, who threw sand in the engines and stole the fuel, and when the floods came, blamed it on nature.

A CARING GOV’T
He also gave his word that the government is committed to supporting programmes that are of benefit to the people.
“Whatever is good… it does not matter who the idea comes from; we will support it, as long as you the people are benefitting,” the PM said, adding:
“We will not seek to re-invent the wheel; we are here because you realise we care for you the people.”
He used the opportunity to reinforce the government’s commitment to the sugar industry, saying that the newly commissioned pumps will also be of great help to GuySuco, particularly where drainage is concerned, which will in turn help with lowering production costs.
“We are not going to close neither the sugar industry, nor the factories,” he said. “We may merge some, but we will not throw the industry aside.”
FLATTS
Speaking also at the opening ceremony was Mr. Fredrick Flatts, NDIA Chief Executive Officer (Ag), who said the main problem facing his agency is poor drainage.

And one of the ways the NDIA has chosen to resolve this problem, he said, is by adding to the gravity drainage system by the use of pump.
He said over the years, several pump stations have been commissioned, among them the one at Windsor Forest on the West Coast Demerara, the one at Canal Number One on the West Bank Demerara, and the one at Number 66, as part of the NDIA’s collective effort to alleviate flooding throughout the country.
He also used the occasion to ask residents to play their part in taking care of the pump stations by being conscious of their waste disposal, as that can pose a risk to the life of the pump station.
As Minister Holder said, “Guyana needs to be able to adapt to climatic changes where water resources and management are concerned, and in light of the El Niño, we are still faced with heavy rainfall, which causes flash floods in some areas.”
He assured those present that the Government will continue to do whatever it takes necessary where agricultural development for the region is concerned, and said that as testimony of this, in 2015 alone, the NDIA was allocated $1.6B to manage, provide and improve the drainage and irrigation sector, and Region 6 an additional $170M for maintenance and Drainage and Irrigation work.
Region 6 Chairman, David Armogan, in brief remarks, welcomed the commissioning of the pump station and said, “It is very significant to this area, because it marks the beginning of an effort to hopefully reduce flooding within the vicinity of the pump station.
“It will go a long way in alleviating flooding issues in the area, compounded by climatic changes.”
He also stressed the need for the pumps for effective drainage. “We can no longer depend on the system of gravity flow; and that is why, throughout the region, new pumps are being placed. We know the effects of flooding to livestock and cash crop, and this will go a long way,” he said.

By Nafeeza Yahya