-Minister Singh tells Black Bush residents  

RESIDENTS of Lesbeholden, Johanna, Mibicuri and Yakusari in Black Bush Polder, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne), were on Monday assured by Senior Minister with Responsibility for Finance within the Office of the President, Dr Ashni Singh, that agriculture has been and will continue to be among the most important industries in the country.

They turned up in their numbers to meet the minister and his technical team to air their concerns and hear of planned developments for the region and country. The four polders are known mainly for farming.

Many were concerned about their livelihoods being threatened by the emergence of the oil-and gas-sector, but after hearing what the minister had to say, they felt pleased and confident that agriculture is still at the forefront of the government’s agenda.

“Agriculture will be a major anchor of our economy moving forward and agriculture will take on even greater significance in the months and years ahead,” Minister Singh assured those gathered.

Speaking directly to the many rice farmers, he reiterated the government’s position on rice and disclosed that plans are already being made to open up more lands for cultivation.

“Rice of course, as you know, is extremely important to us. We see rice playing a tremendous role going forward. In fact, we anticipate that the rice industry [will] grow even more. We are planning to bring more acreage under cultivation. We are planning to continue to invest in drainage and irrigation to ensure you are able to get good yields. We are continuing to invest in new varieties and extension services, all with the aim of ensuring our rice production can be raised, that the yields are raised, that our cost of production is lowered and we get good markets and we are able to ensure the long-term viability and profitability of rice,” he added.

While touching on diversification, the senior minister spoke about introducing new crops to the market and also transforming the way cash crops are looked at as the agro-processing facility at Mibicuri moves closer to becoming operational.

“We are exploring new crops. I’m sure you have heard about the President’s corn and soya bean initiative. We are looking to become a large-scale corn and soya bean producer to augment crops we have historically been producing on a large scale; we are looking also at cash crops and catapulting cash crops to a completely new level of operation. There again ensuring we not only produce cash crops for sale as fresh fruits and vegetables, but for processing and value-added by processing them and giving them longer shelf life,” he told the residents.

The minister and team then made a quick stop at Mibicuri to check on the progress of the agro-processing plant. It was disclosed that the facility is in an advanced state of readiness and that the equipment is being imported and would be installed shortly.

The construction of the plant was made possible through a partnership between government and a private investor. It is expected that fresh produce will be taken from farmers and processed for export and sale in local markets. The facility is expected to be operational within a matter of months, even as the government is actively pursuing other similar partnerships, so that more value can be added to the abundance of locally produced fruits and vegetables.

Meanwhile, given the recent success of the farmers’ market, the Ministry of Agriculture has been tasked with increasing the frequency of such events, so that farmers can take their produce and have them sold directly to consumers.

Transport infrastructure, particularly as it relates to farm-to-market and community roads, was among the main concerns highlighted by residents.

The contracts for some of the roads identified for rehabilitation will soon be awarded. The minister, however, stressed that while a $4 billion sum has been allocated for road works, all may not be fixed with this budget. He has asked the technical team to assess the roads that were identified and to prioritise works based on their condition.

Water and recreational facilities were also addressed and the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GWI, Shaik Baksh, is expected to be in the area soon to deal with concerns arising from the quality and reliability of the water supply in the four polders.

Many of residents subsequently expressed gratitude to the minister and his team for listening to their concerns.

President Irfaan Ali led a one-day cabinet outreach to the region on Monday. Ministers visited various communities to listen to issues facing residents. A day earlier, Vice-President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo began meeting with the residents. Those meetings continued on Monday.