DURING a meeting with rice farmers from the West Coast of Demerara (Region 3) on Friday, Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha, said that approximately 9,000,000 bags of paddy are expected to be harvested in the first crop of 2025.

He said that over the last four years, the government has invested in infrastructure to support the expansion of the agriculture sector and has also made inputs available to assist with lowering the costs associated with rice cultivation.

“As a government, we recognise the value of the rice industry, and that is why we’ve been making inputs available. For this crop, the 233,000 acres, when we examine the estimated amount of paddy to be harvested, is around 9,000,000 bags. We removed the VAT from the inputs in agriculture. In two instances, fertiliser was procured and given to farmers.

“We are looking to rehabilitate and extend all of the seed facilities so that seeds can be available to farmers on a timelier basis with excellent varieties producing better yields. In the last four years, we have launched three new varieties. So, the support has been tremendous over the years,” Minister Mustapha explained.

Minister Mustapha also told farmers that contrary to what is being said on social media by known anti-government propagandists, negotiations between the millers and the government commenced weeks ago.

“The President engaged the millers on several occasions to determine how we can work together to keep the price of paddy at a stable rate. These negotiations didn’t happen overnight. They began weeks ago. At one point, they were at a deadlock, and the President intervened and said we will ensure the farmers receive a minimum of $4,000 for a bag of paddy. Every bag of paddy that the farmer sells to the mill, we have to contribute. When you do the calculation, we have to inject approximately $2.7 billion to ensure farmers receive a better price,” Minister Mustapha explained.

The minister also said that the PPP/C government has always engaged farmers and, when necessary, stepped in to ensure farmers receive a fair deal.
“The millers said they could not pay the $4,000 per bag because of the current world market price and other factors. In order to come to an agreement, we had to contribute. We did it before, and we’ll do it again. Like any other responsible government, we are always ensuring that we bring relief to people. The farmers know that this government, under the leadership of His Excellency, President Irfaan Ali, has and will always ensure farmers get a fair deal,” he explained.

Minister Mustapha also told the farmers that the ministry will explore procuring a Jaclo sprayer to assist farmers from the region with the application of chemicals. This, he added, would represent an investment of approximately $6.5 million.

In 2024, rice production surpassed its target and reached an all-time high of 725,282 metric tonnes, representing a record-breaking milestone in the country’s agriculture sector.