OVER 500 Black Belly sheep are scheduled to arrive in Guyana from Barbados by the end of March, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said on Monday.

In an invited comment, the minister said the arrival of the final batch will hopefully see the official roll out of the project.

“This morning [Monday], I spoke to the Minister of Agriculture in Barbados and he told me by the end of this month,” Mustapha said.

He related that the respective officers in Guyana and Barbados remain in contact as the sheep are currently undergoing a quarantine exercise before they are shipped to Guyana.

“I’m hoping by the end of this month, early next month, we can have all balance of the sheep coming into the country,” Mustapha said.

In August 2022, Guyana received the first shipment totalling 132 sheep, inclusive of 20 rams and 112 ewes.

The Guyana Livestock Development Authority (GLDA) was tasked with weaning the sheep to ensure that they adjust to Guyana’s climate, as well as introducing them to new diets. And, according to the Agriculture Minister, the weaning process thus far has been successful.

President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, during the launch of a Black Belly Sheep Project at Onverwagt, West Coast Berbice back in March, had said the project is intended to pave the way for Guyana to tap into the region’s hefty food import bill, which sees CARICOM countries collectively spending some US$43 million on import of mutton alone.

And even though Guyana’s food production capabilities are impressive, the country still imports approximately US$130,000 worth of mutton.

With an initial investment of US$3 million, Dr. Ali said that the Black Belly Sheep Project targets 2,000 heads of sheep, and is slated for significant expansion in order to produce at least 7,000 tonnes of mutton by the end of five years. It is also expected to create at least 4,500 direct and indirect jobs.

President Ali had pointed out that the world import value on mutton and mutton products is US$8 billion. CARICOM alone imports 7,900 tonnes of mutton at US$48 million annually.
Bahamas, Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago are the four major markets that Guyana can target.

The project will target 20 per cent of women farmers and 35 per cent of young people under the age of 35.

Several farmers have signalled their interest in the project, which is one of many initiatives being rolled out by Guyana and Barbados to reduce the region’s food import bill by 2025.