President David Grainger exhorts at World Food Day…There must be zero hunger!

Oct 17, 2017 News

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World Food Day was held at the Bayrock Community Centre Ground under the theme Food Security and Hinterland Development…Our National Priority, yesterday.
President David Granger who graced the event delivered the feature address. He said that citizens must at all times have sufficient food and access to nutritious food.
He exhorted that there must be zero hunger. “We must work to see that no one goes to bed hungry. “We can produce food for all; we can do better to feed our children. Everybody all the time must have enough food that they can be satisfied with… food that can make them healthy and happy.
“When we talk about food security we mean that food must be available and people must have access to that food.”
The President added that Guyana is not so much threatened by hunger, but is threatened in part by undernourishment.
He added that we must examine the impact that the environment has on food production and the quality of food.
Yesterday’s event was attended by scores of residents, students, Teachers and Regional Officials. It was chaired by Mayor Carwyn Holland.
Among the businesses exhibiting their products were Banks DIH, Chanzars Enterprise, Guyana Rice Development Board, Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries Department, and the Guyana Apicultural Society among others.
Region Ten is bigger than Jamaica. It’s the only region that straddles all three Rivers. “Linden has extensive grasslands and rainforest so the region is important because of these land forms and we are here today.
“Linden and Region Ten could provide food for all. Everybody must have food all the time, when we talk about food security we mean that food must be available
Some 850 million people in the world are chronically malnourished. Guyana is not so much threatened by hunger but undernourishment.
The President alluded to other countries such as those in the Caribbean which has disrupted agriculture production, because of the recent hurricanes, and said that Guyana is blessed.
“When we think of the plight of our brothers and sisters in the British Virgin Islands and Dominica and Barbuda, we must think of Guyana as part of a whole, we mustn’t stand aside and ignore our brothers and sisters-we must think of the Carribbean in a holistic way.
“Guyana is lucky that we can produce enough meat, cereals in the form of rice and enough vegetables.”
He however noted that access is uneven because of other problems- problems of investment, Infrastructure and agro processing.
The President said that even though Guyana escapes the extremes of weather, he exhorted that those weather patterns should not be ignored.
He added that there has to be greater environmental consciousness, as environmental degradation would affect food production and security.
“So don’t believe right now because we are food secure it would go on forever. There has to be greater environmental consciousness.”
“This is something we must take very seriously, there are many policies and I’m glad that we are here in Region Ten that we could share those policies through the UNDP and through the FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture.
President Granger said that residents should “think Region, think Caribbean-as every year the Caribbean imports about US$4billion in food, and that much of that food could be produced in Guyana.
He suggested that it is for places like Region Ten to take a step forward to increase its food production to get a bite of that big food import bill.
He added that this could take place at the level of the household, the Municipality and the Region.
President Granger urged that there must be more production and that more investment should be plugged into Agriculture.
According to the President it is eye pass for people to come and sell things to residents that can be produced in Linden.
“Every day you have to eat food… so you have to invest in food. We have to look at technologies involved in agro processing. Alluded to coconut water being produced in the Pomeroon, and which is being exported.
Every region must have agro processing facilities and there must be more investment the President emphasized.
Others making presentations included Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder. Some of the entities showcasing products at the Food Fair and exhibition included NAREI, the Women Agro processors Development Network, Go Invest, The Inter American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture, Guyana Rice Development Board. Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries Department and the Guyana Apicultural Society.
Students from schools from all across Linden took the opportunity to view the exhibits and interact with personnel manning the various booths.
An Official attached to the Guyana Apicultural Society, Linden Stewart, second Team Leader for Kingdom Apiary whose task it was to inform viewers spoke to students and other interested parties about bees and their importance.
Several health officials including Dr. Dominic Park , Dr. Dason Mackenzie, Dr. Orin Alexander, and Dr. Asha Kissoon all attached to the Ministry of Health, were also in attendance.
Nurse Ayodle Watson from the Ministry of Public Health, was tasked with supervision of the blood donation drive, Filaria, blood pressure testing and blood sugar testing. There was also VIA sensitizing and HiV counselling for both parents and children on the HPV vaccine.
Dr. Gregory Harris, Chairman of the Regional Health Committee said that the response was satisfactory. He expressed gratitude to the Ministry of Public Health Promotion Department, the Linden Hospital Complex, and Dr. Pansy Armstrong the Regional Health Officer.
The doctors were tasked with monitoring and sensitizing persons to various health issues.
Prominent Linden Businessman and CEO of Frenergy Alternative Energy Solutions, Norville Fredericks, Showcased his solar energy appliances, including a dc refrigerator powered by a solar energy generator. The solar generator which produce five and twelve volts DC and 110or 220 AC comes complete with solar panels.
The refrigerators run on twelve or twenty four battery current.
Fredericks said that his products are farm friendly as most farms are rural and without electricity.
De Souza Sensational Herbal and luxurious skin products also had several items on exhibition. The exhibits include beauty soaps and oil all made from coconuts. Proprietor of the Business Owen DeSouza proudly pointed out that he had produced all the products locally at his factory in Block 22 Wismar.

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