PRESIDENT, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali and his PPP/C administration are hard at work to transform the lives of the Guyanese people and to create opportunities for people to become meaningfully involved in the process of development, both at the community level and the national level.

Both President Ali and Vice-President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo have been visiting several regions of the country to have direct interface with residents on how best to advance the growth and development of their respective communities in terms of job creation, small-business development and overall development.

Development for the PPP/C administration is all about people, advancing their material and spiritual well-being within the overarching framework of the ‘One Guyana’ vision, as articulated by President Ali. A multi-pronged development programme is being rolled out across the country to empower citizens in all facets of national life.

Only recently, President Ali was in Region Five where he launched the Black Belly Sheep Project at the Mahaica-Mahaicony-Abary Agricultural Development Authority (MMA-ADA) at Onverwagt, West Coast Berbice. The project is aimed at empowering farmers with a special focus on women and young people. The project has already attracted 80 farmers and is intended to have at least 20 per cent female farmers with a minimum of 35 per cent youth involvement.

According to President Ali, “This is part of building the future. This is part of empowerment. These are real targets and a real approach in the involvement of people. Not only must agriculture be about food production, it must be built on erasing biases. Agriculture must demonstrate that it has the ability to create an equal society.”

Mutton is very much in demand not only in Guyana, but in the Caribbean and the rest of the world. The price of mutton on the local market is relatively expensive and could be a valuable source of income. There is also a high demand for the produce in the country with Guyana importing approximately 18 metric tonnes of mutton annually, with an estimated value of US$130,000.

Describing mutton production as a ‘low hanging fruit,’ the President urged residents of Region Five to take full advantage of this opening which could potentially satisfy both regional and international markets later down the road. According to President Ali, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, The Bahamas and Barbados are the top consumers of mutton in the region, with Barbados already on board to source mutton from Guyana.

This is exactly what the project is intended to do, namely to kick-start the project in Region Five. In this regard, 1,000 black belly sheep will be arriving from Barbados within the next two weeks. The President assured the farmers that his administration is fully supportive of the initiative, even as he encouraged them to ensure that their lands have the needed grass for the animals.

And in Region 10, Vice-president Dr Bharrat Jagdeo assured residents there that the PPP/C administration is doing everything possible to transform the lives of citizens and spur economic growth in the region and the economy as a whole. In this regard, he announced that some 800 jobs will be made available to residents of Region 10, as part of the government’s plans to subsidise household incomes, especially in light of the rising cost-of- living caused primarily by external factors. A similar initiative was announced in Region Two during an outreach to that region by Dr Jagdeo. In addition, several other interventions will be made, including the provision of grants to small businesses and the construction of call centres, all aimed at creating job opportunities to residents of the outlying regions. The government is encouraging micro-enterprise development, which can create employment and stimulate economic growth.

The approach to development by the PPP/C administration is both holistic and comprehensive. It is about empowering people and communities through better access to quality education and health services; upgrading and modernisation of the physical and social infrastructure, including housing and water.

All of these are clear manifestations of a government in action; an administration hard at work to improve lives and living conditions of the Guyanese people. In this regard, no region in Guyana is left behind, for which the PPP/C administration must be commended.