— Agriculture Minister says, talks up opportunities in agro-business development
THE agricultural sector is not to be forgotten in Guyana’s developmental drive as there are numerous opportunities available in crop cultivation, agro-processing and livestock farming, according to Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha.
At a recent webinar organised by the Indo-Caribbean Society and supported by the Texila American University, Minister Mustapha highlighted, “Agriculture production in Guyana has been increasing and has the potential for a greater increase. The agriculture sector is in the process of transforming and there is an array of business opportunities.”
He outlined that the specific subsectors of crop cultivation, agro-processing and livestock farming are three areas investments should be directed to, since there are tremendous agriculture business opportunities present here.
In the 2020 emergency budget, several incentives- tax concessions and waivers of import duty and Value Added Tax (VAT) — were offered for agri-business development. And cognisant of these, Minister Mustapha recommended that crops such as corn, soybean and orchard crops should be cultivated. He also posited that there can be further investments in the processing in the value chains of rice and coconut.
Livestock farming, he reminded, is one of Guyana’s main productive agricultural activities. Despite being self-sufficient in all of its meat products, the country is, however, a major importer of dairy products. This costs the country approximately GY$1.8B.
“With Good Manufacturing Techniques and ISO certification, a local dairy industry can supply the recommended quota,” he said, emphasising that value addition in the livestock industry is therefore one possible area for business ventures.
For a number of years the local dairy industry has been underproductive, despite its potential to be a massive income earner. There have been talks over the past few years of revitalising this industry, and, though not much progress has been seen, Minister Mustapha stressed that the time is ‘ripe’ for greater developmental efforts in this area.
The removal of VAT from key inputs in the poultry industry, he reasoned, has also provided leeway for agri-businesses to retool and improve the poultry industry processing development by adding value and creating products such as poultry sausage, ham and cutlets.
But beyond just commodity production, the Minister stressed that Guyana’s agricultural industry has also vast potential for agro-processing and the provision of supplies and products such as seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and equipment.
In the hinterland regions, there is scope for high value processed products such as cassava by-products, fruit juices, dried ginger, mangoes and processed peanut products. While on the Coast, he said agri-businesses can target displaced sugar workers to create jobs and to convert the high food loss to processed products.
“Vast potential in industrial development exists for agro-processing, adding value to local products and thereby creating off-farm employment opportunities,” he said, stressing, “It is the government’s intention to create an enabling environment for an efficient and competitive local manufacturing sector, with specific focus on agro-processing.”
And though agencies such as Guyana Rice Development Board, the National Agricultural Research and Extension Institute and the Guyana Livestock Development Authority provide services on research and development, and extension advisory services, he said the ministry welcomes private public partnerships in these areas of production and harvesting.
