–farmers who suffered losses due to inclement weather to receive assistance

AGRICULTURE Minister Zulfikar Mustapha on Tuesday travelled to the Essequibo Coast to meet with farmers to discuss some of the issues affecting the agricultural sector.

The crowd comprising mostly rice farmers, gathered at the Rice Producers Association (RPA) bond at Anna Regina and were given an opportunity to engage the minister and his team in a one-on-one setting.

While a small group of farmers chose to exit the meeting before directly engaging the visiting team, scores of farmers and residents took the opportunity to sit down with the minister to raise their concerns.

Rice farmers, in particular, did not hesitate to say that millers offered a price which is $500 less than what they received last crop.

“Crop after crop is the same thing. We need the price to increase so that we can get our expenses back. Rice is we living and every crop is like [we] getting robbed. We are just frustrated and we got loans to pay” Dyal Narine said.

While pointing out that the price of paddy for the current crop was a burning concern for many farmers, especially in Region Two, Minister Mustapha said that he will soon meet with the Guyana Rice Millers’ Association to discuss the matter.

“The main issue today seems to be the price for paddy. Only about 22,000 acres were planted in Region Two for this crop. I will be meeting with the Guyana Rice Millers’ Association on Friday to see if farmers can get better prices for paddy, especially in Region Two. When that meeting is finished, I will communicate with the farmers,” he said.

The Agriculture Minister said too that his ministry will be working with rice farmers to assist them in increasing cultivation.

“We are looking at how we can work with those farmers and see how we can get back those lands under cultivation. There are a number of areas we are looking at to bring relief to… cash crop farmers, we are looking to venture out to new crops” Mustapha said.

LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY
The Agriculture Ministry is also looking to develop the livestock sector, as persons when they think of agriculture, concentrate only on cash crop farming or rice farming.
Livestock, Minister Mustapha said, is part of agriculture and his ministry will be working to advance the industry.

“We have to work with farmers to develop the livestock sector. At the end of today’s exercise, I hope we can resolve as many issues as possible… I will be working with my team as long as possible,” Mustapha said.

He related that he visited the region to directly engage farmers and listen to their individual concerns.

Rice Farmer, Ramjit Sookhoo, said that he is currently seeking cash to get back into his field. He said that he did not cultivate his land and he is hoping the ministry could help.

Although the minister was open to engagements on any area, he was disappointed with the behaviour of the few who appeared to have a premeditated agenda and attempted to disrupt the meeting.

Minister Mustapha said that rice farmers especially have benefitted from a lot of assistance since the government was elected to office in August 2020.

“Since we got back into government, we’ve been trying our best. Many farmers right here on the Essequibo Coast received direct cash payments and seed paddy when we had the flood in 2021. Last crop when the price was low, farmers said that they were not happy and we intervened, and many farmers received $4,000 per bag for paddy last crop.

“I am very shocked at this behaviour because when farmers were told rice was a private business, they never behaved in this manner. Now we are here to listen to you and work to find solutions to your issues, a few are trying to disrupt the meeting. We have to be factual. I am here to listen to you to see how best we can resolve the issues,” he said.

The minister also disclosed that the government will also continue to rehabilitate critical infrastructure so that farmers can have access to transport their paddy from the fields.

“This year again, $25 million will be made available to rehabilitate dams in Region Two from the Ministry of Agriculture so that farmers can bring out their paddy. The Water Users Association has $10 million. The seed facility here, I’ve asked GRDB to refurbish it so that we can start producing seed paddy in time for the next crop.

“Some rice farmers gave me a list with a number of issues so that we can sit down as a team and go through them point by point. For instance, things like zero rated on certain machinery and parts; there are still a number of spare parts that attract VAT because they are also used outside of the sector. We have to work with the GRA to deal with that,” Mustapha said.