–President tells Lindeners as Guyana celebrates World Food Day

PRESIDENT Granger told Lindeners on Monday it’s about time they get with the programme and get involved in agricultural production in a big way.
“We have to invest in agricultural production. Every day you have to eat food; you can’t eat bauxite, timber or gold, you have to invest in food,” President Granger said.
“We have to move agriculture to industrial scales; we have to start producing for the market; we have to move our agriculture production,” he told patrons gathered at the Bayroc Community Centre Ground in Wismar to participate in the event being held there to mark World Food Day (WFD).

The event, which was hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture, saw a grand assemblage of scores of booths exhibiting agricultural produce, livestock, local craft items, medicinal plants, pesticides and educational material on agricultural production.
Among government and other officials at the opening ceremony besides President David Granger, were Minister of Agriculture, Mr Noel Holder; Junior Finance Minister, Mr Jaipaul Sharma; Junior Minister of Communities, Ms Valarie Patterson; Mr. Robert Natiello of the International Organisation on Migration (IOM); Mr. Ruben Robertson of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO); and Ms Mikiko Tanaka of the United Nations.
President Granger, in his feature address, urged Lindeners to invest in agricultural production since the region in which they live is blessed with the resources for agricultural development.
He also commended Minister Holder for having the vision to hold such an important event in Linden, given the need for the region to rise to the occasion and realise its true potential.
“Region 10 is essential to the agricultural development of this country; not only agricultural development but diversification and agro-industrialisation,” the President said, adding:
“Linden, and Region 10 as a whole, can help to provide food for all.”

FOOD SECURITY
Citing the difficulty the government is having with achieving the goal of food security, not only in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) but the entire country, the president said that one sure way of getting around it is to establish a major agro-industrial complex in every region, and suggested that Minister Holder do just that.
Contending that every Guyanese has the right to food and knowing that it is readily available, President Granger said:
“When we talk about food security, we mean that food must be available in sufficient quantities, and people must have access to that food. And when you get the food, it must be available and satisfying.”

He, however, made it a point that it’s not that Guyana is threatened by hunger, but rather that undernourishment is the real issue, as access to food is uneven because of a number of problems.
“We have to deal with those problems: Problems of investment, problems of infrastructure, and problems of agro-processing,” the president said.
In closing, he had a particular message he wanted to leave Lindeners and residents of the wider Region 10.
“The message of this Food Day is that you can do it; right here in Region 10. I want you to aim at that goal; at that objective. We can produce food for all in this region, Region 10,” President Granger said.

MESSAGE OF HOPE
Giving Linden farmers some kind of hope that they can pull it off was Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder who, in his address, revealed that the government will soon construct in the community of West Watooka, hydraulic structures to complement the already existing drainage works to aid farmers.

Minister Holder highlighted that the intermediate savannahs of Region 10 have been earmarked as Guyana’s new agricultural frontier as the MoA continues to narrow the gap between the coastal and hinterland regions.
He spoke of the massive agricultural project that is being undertaken at Ebini, a community located in the Upper Berbice River of Region 10.
“Region 10 is vital in the development of Guyana; it is certainly located in the heart of the country, bordering six other regions, and spanning the three major rivers,” Minister Holder said, adding:
“This region is unique; there is no other region that is so well connected, well wired to the country.

Regional Vice-Chairman, Mr. Elroy Adolph, lauded the government for pushing agricultural production and food security in Region 10 as was done before in the 70s.
He alluded to the massive agricultural projects being spearheaded in the Upper Berbice River, and encouraged residents to work with our national leaders to produce food in the region.

“I am very happy that we have a president and we have a minister who is concerned about food security in our town, in our country,” Mr Adolph said.
“I am very happy that once again our region is on the front burner of pushing food security,” he added.

In his short address, the IOM’s Mr. Robert Natiello said that one of the reasons for celebrating World Food Day is to remind persons that access to food for many the world over is still a constant battle, since there are some 815 million people, which equates to one in every nine, that go to bed hungry. Noting that this is one of the main reasons that people are forced to migrate, and in droves, Natiello said the IOM has always prioritised food security by striving to eradicate poverty. “The IOM will continue to work with its partners such as the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the Government of Guyana to make sure that people migrate as a matter of choice rather than by necessity,” he said.

Similar sentiments were echoed by Ms Tanaka, in that the UN is about the good life for all; is cognisant that sustainable agriculture is essential; and therefore stands with Guyana to achieve this goal.

ALWAYS A PLEASURE
Mr. Robertson said the FAO is very pleased to be partnering with the MoA to pull off this WFD celebration. In his speech, he said the celebration addresses the structural move of people in order to migrate safely and orderly. The FAO, he said, has made significant strides in eradicating poverty, but recognises that there is an increase of 38M people who are hungrier than in 2016. Like the IOM ‘rep’, he, too, stressed that one in every nine persons are not just going to bed hungry, but are forced to migrate because of a lack of food security.

“The FAO will advocate for solutions that will make migration an act of choice and not a desperate last result,” he said, adding:
“Agriculture and rural development have critical roles to play to reduce rural migration.”
WFD 2017 is celebrated under the theme, ‘Change the future of migration. Invest in food security and rural development’.
The programme was chaired by Mayor of Linden, Mr Carwyn Holland, and saw a wealth of cultural activities as well as the honouring of Linden’s gold medallist, young Deshana Skeete.

Some of the organisations that exhibited agricultural products and livestock were the Guyana Livestock Development Association (GLDA), the Ministry of Agriculture, the Guyana School of Agriculture, Farfan and Mendes, and the Upper Demerara United Farmers Society.
Also on board were several community development councils and agricultural groups in Linden, as well as small-scale agro-processors.