CUBA is expected to purchase additional tonnes of rice from Guyana by January 2020, Minister of Business Haimraj Rajkumar has said.

He said he came by the information while talking with Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel during a recent visit to Cuba as part of a local delegation to the Havana International Fair (FIHAV) 2019.

“His Excellency [President Miguel Díaz-Canel] has indicated his interest in continuing to purchase rice from Guyana,” Minister Rajkumar said, adding: “He has disclosed to me an allocation in his 2020 budget has been set aside as part of his budget to purchase rice exclusively from Guyana. He is also very interested in our Eco-Tourism in terms of a multi-destination package which will see visitors from Guyana travelling to Cuba, and visitors from Cuba travelling to Guyana. I think that it’s a fantastic idea, and that the relationship between Guyana and Cuba will even grow stronger.”

Minister Rajkumar also said that during a meeting with the company, Al-Imports, he learnt that they too will be increasing their quota of rice from Guyana. “The President of Al-Import has indicated to me that in addition to the amount of rice that they would normally purchase, they will be increasing that amount by 29,000 tonnes by 2020,” he said, adding: I am happy that we are getting into the Cuban market; I am sure that our rice farmers in Guyana would benefit from this venture.”

Minister Rajkumar also told the Department of Public Information (DPI) that during a meeting with representatives of the Cuban Private Sector Commission, both sides expressed an interest in having discussions particularly on matters pertaining to the agriculture sector.

During his sojourn to Cuba, Minister Rajkumar reportedly met with the First Vice-Minister of Tourism, Luis Miguel Diaz Sanchez where the two talked at length about the potential of Ecotourism. “During the ‘expo’,” Minister Rajkumar said, “patrons were very interested in our booth. During that time, we held meetings with South Africa and Kenya, where they were sensitised about Guyana and the goods and services we have to offer.”
The Havana International Fair (FIHAV), first held in 1983, is an annual international trade festival, and this year coincides with the celebration of Havana’s 500th anniversary as a town.

The five-day fair was held from November 4-8 at the EXPOCUBA Exhibition Site in the Cuban capital, Havana.

FIHAV is the largest international fair for trade and investment in Cuba, and attracts delegations from all across Latin America and the Caribbean, as it provides an excellent business platform for new companies in the market and those that have already been established. (DPI)