…Gov’t to retain Blairmont, Albion, Uitvlugt– President tells West Berbice expo

AMID the contraction of the sugar industry here, President David Granger announced Saturday evening that the Blairmont, Uitvlugt and Albion estates are likely to remain when government makes a decision to restructure the Guyana Sugar Corporation.
“We have to produce our commodities more cheaply, otherwise we will not be able to compete, whoever is in the Government.  We will not be able to compete if your commodities are too expensive. We want to save the sugar industry, but it must be efficient and competitive,” President Granger told the opening of the West Berbice Trade Fair and Exposition held at Bath Settlement.  “And Mr Sacoor (Imran Sacoor) is right. We are not working to destroy the industry, we are working to develop the industry and the industry has been contracting. “Some countries like Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, St. Kitts and Nevis, Jamaica, Belize have seen their industries contract. Some have disappeared altogether because the cost of production was too high,” President Granger said.
He added that Guyana is trying to preserve its industry. “That is why there will be a Blairmont and that is why there is going to be an Albion and we will preserve as many of our plantations and estates as possible. Uitvlugt will remain, but we have to deal with the problems of cost. So ladies and gentlemen I agree with the slogan chosen for this fair and exposition; that we must think about diversification.”
Government is expected to present a White Paper in the National Assembly soon, pertaining to the future of GuySuCo, the Cabinet Secretary announced back in March. The issue was discussed extensively at the ministerial conference held on February 28, at State House, when Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder, made his presentation. The conclusion of consultations among government, the unions and the opposition on GuySuCo’s future, along with the options advanced by the government and the proposal made by the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), will form the basis of the White Paper, Harmon had told a news briefing.
When asked if any sugar estates will be closed, Harmon had said that proposals were made to that effect, along with diversification of several estates. He however emphasised that the welfare of sugar workers and their families is the top priority of the APNU+AFC government. “The welfare of the workers and their families is of primary concern. The other economic concerns and so on will of course be dealt with, but the workers’ interest is at the forefront of whatever policy we’re going to embrace with respect to the sugar industry,” Harmon said.
The White Paper is expected to deal with the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the sugar industry, the proposals by GuySuCo, the consultations held with stakeholders and GAWU’s presentation, the decisions facing government relating to the recovery of drainage and irrigation charges of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority, diversification of the Skeldon factory and the leased lands.
In a report which was presented to the Parliamentary Economic Services Committee in January by GuySuCo’s Chairman, Clive Thomas and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Errol Hanoman, it stated that the outlook for Guyana’s sugar industry continues to be grim as the officials declared that funds injected into sugar industry at this time will be funds “wasted.”
The industry has received criticisms from all levels; with a debt of $77.3B and consecutive losses, officials are advising that the industry is one not worth investing in unless plans for the reorganisation, restructuring and diversification of the industry are present. Figures based on 2015 audited accounts, show that GuySuCo recorded a profit once in the past six years, which was recorded in 2013 due to the tax adjustment. Thus, “radical reorganisation, contraction of sugar and major diversification are urgently required for better predictability and planning,” stated the report.
The corporation’s performance deteriorated after having invested its own funds in the SSMP project (2005 onwards) which did not yield returns as expected, causing cash flow difficulties, coupled with declining sugar prices and increased costs, particularly employment costs, affecting capital and maintenance projects required to sustain and improve production levels.
The report stated that there needs to be validation of GuySuCo’s head office/ central services; with the proposed plan of retaining only three estates, Albion, Blairmont and Uitvlugt. It was suggested that GuySuCo’s agriculture research centre be delinked and merged with the national research centre being developed with IDB funding.
And, the corporation’s training centre be developed as an independent technical school. But, according to the report, in order to rationalise the sugar industry from seven estates, it requires specialist expertise, because the sugar industry lacks skills and experience. The report indicated that GuySuCo’s state of affairs must not remain the same, because time is of the essence and decisions need to be made, as $18B would be required in 2017 and a further $21B in 2018, to run GuySuCo.