Essequibo rice farmers mull drastic action in face of El Nino

Jan 16, 2010 News

Essequibo rice farmers in meeting with government and other key bodies yesterday at Anna Regina.

Guyana spends $3M daily for pumps

by Leonard Gildarie

Essequibo rice farmers are facing the harsh possibility of drastically reducing the volume of paddy they may sow this crop as a result of the current dry weather brought on by the El Nino weather phenomenon.
And yesterday, the Ministry of Agriculture announced that $3M is being spent daily on fuel across the country as drainage and irrigation officials attempt to bring water to rice fields, seriously depleting already low conservancy levels.
In Region Two, only 60 per cent or 20,000 of the 30,000 plus acres of rice lands have been cultivated.
This was reported by Minister of Agriculture, Robert Persaud, yesterday as rice officials met worried farmers at Anna Regina, Essequibo.
Four pumps
According to Region Two Vice Chairman, Vishnu Samaroo, the Essequibo situation is serious with four pumps at Dawa working almost 18 hours daily since mid-December but their efforts are still not enough.
The Agriculture Ministry said that it was forced to send fuel to pumps there from the city.
According to the Regional official, the key focus now is on the management of remaining irrigation water and farmers were urged to conserve as local weather officials predict that the situation will continue until March.
Samaroo, underscoring the seriousness of the situation, said that help may be sought from the police and army to monitor the conservancy in an effort to stop farmers from possible lawlessness.
Water levels have dropped by 50 per cent when conservancy levels were 36 inches in December.
In addition to this, the salinity content of the irrigation water, aggravated by the dry weather and dropping levels, is now threatening the planting even more.
Yesterday, at Charity, the salinity content of water measured 1400 ppm (part per million)— 200 ppm more than the accepted level for irrigation water.

The availability of irrigation in dwindling and Essequibo rice farmers are contemplating slashing their planting.

The next two weeks for farmers will be critical to determine whether they would be able to continue planting on a scale that cannot be sustained by the irrigations water currently in the conservancies, Minister Persaud warned the farmers at the meeting at the Anna Regina Town Council.
While there have been sporadic showers in Regions Two, Three, Four and Five and Six, there are no signs of rain for the Essequibo Coast, the Minister said.
Assistance
The Minister said that there will be an assessment of the fallout suffered by rice farmers in Guyana to determine the extent, if any, of losses. Based on this, means will be worked out to offer assistance.
This could include the possible waiving of drainage and irrigation fees and reshuffling of bank loans.
The Minister noted that the government has taken a stance of ensuring that assistance be given to the industry whenever there are problems.
A recent example of this was when the international prices for rice fell 25 per cent last year and government intervened by allocating $400M to the industry.
However, the assistance has not come without its share of problems.
In the Essequibo region alone, some 269 fertilizer vouchers for “vulnerable” rice farmers were cancelled after question arose over claims. Almost 400 applications by the farmers are now being investigated for possible fraudulent claims.
Additionally, there are other interventions designed to ease the plight of farmers. These include the recent assent to the Rice Factories Amendment Act by President Bharrat Jagdeo.
Millers have a period of two weeks to pay 50 percent of total sale to individual farmers as opposed to just 50 percent of total paddy sale.
They are also granted an additional 42 days to pay the remainder; failing which they face the possibility of having their licence revoked and interest penalties as well.
The Bill amends the Rice Factories Act 1998 with Clause Two seeking to ensure that millers owe no farmer over five percent of the paddy supplied unless approved by the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB).
Millers warned
The Minister told farmers that his Ministry had to intervene recently after complaints that the Mahaicony Rice Mills, the largest purchaser of paddy, owed farmers for prolonged periods.
The Ministry lobbied to the banker of the rice mill successfully and the overdraft facility was extended.
Persaud warned rice millers to stop using farmers as “banks”. Indicating that most of the rice had found market and were paid for.
The rice industry, while facing challenges, has positive outlooks which come at a time when Guyana’s economy recorded a two per cent growth, when the world is in the throes of a financial crisis. Farmers yesterday complained that there were instances of fuel theft from the pumps at Dawa and it was disclosed that two staffers have since been fired.
Based on farmers’ complaints, he also warned drainage and irrigation officials to exhibit professional behaviour since the government has no place for anyone not willing to toe the line.
Samaroo, the Vice-Chairman of the Region also yesterday urged the farmers to report any wrongdoings from staffers.
Farmers yesterday also asked the Ministry’s intervention in helping to reshuffle loans and ensure that the regulations governing paddy payments by millers be rigidly enforced.
Responding to concerns that there may be a shortage of rice on the local market, the Minister did not express worry and revealed that there are almost 90,000 metric tonnes of rice in the country that was carried over from the last crop.