Guyana commits to aiding reduction of regional food bill by 2025

Apr 10, 2022 News

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– as Agri-Investment Forum and Expo attracts over 100 regional, intentional companies

Kaieteur News – Guyana will make every effort to support the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) vision of reducing its regional food import bill by 25 percent come 2025, a release from the Office of the President has stated. The move has become a necessity, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali said, given the high impact of global events on the region’s ability to feed itself during effects on the supply of food required by Caribbean nations.

The Head-of-State was at the time speaking at the launch of the upcoming Agri-Investment Forum and Expo held at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre at Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown when he stressed the “urgency” of producing more food within the region as a means of shielding against foreign factors that affect supply.
Referencing the current war in Ukraine and its ramification on the global food supply, the President said that the consequences of the conflict are now beginning to take a toll globally. “We don’t know where the end is, but what we do know is that every single global citizen will be affected, and that is why this (large food import bill) must come to an end as fast as possible.”
President Ali alluded to the wheat production capacity of Ukraine and its aggressor Russia, stating that prior to the war, they exported more than a quarter of the world’s wheat. Since the war facilitated the drop in the production of wheat and other produce, affecting the global cost and availability, the President insisted that the time is right for the region to up its agricultural capacity.
As the Head on Agriculture, Agricultural Diversification and Food Security in CARICOM, the President noted that producing food for the region and reaching the intended goal is not just complex but multifaceted. He listed several critical areas, including financing, technology, partnership, shared responsibilities and the inclusion of women and youths to not only bolster production but to make it globally competitive.
“It is about transport and logistics. It is about niche markets. It is about job creation. It is about research and development. It is bringing all of these different areas together in unison that will allow us to achieve this target,” President Ali explained.
He went on to say that moves by the Caribbean are also getting global recognition. He expounded, “Sometimes we believe things go unnoticed, but our vision in CARICOM is already touching different corners of the globe to the extent that the Minister of Finance (Ashni Singh) this week was able to get the full commitment of Inter-American Development Bank to be part of the 25 by 2025 vision. Not only will they be part of the vision, but they will be part of the Expo,” the President announced.
He said that the Canadian High Commission and the European Union Ambassador have also pledged their support, as well as four of the largest buyers and distributors from the UAE who would also be attending the forum. Additionally, 20 international companies, 33 regional companies, 53 local companies and at least four global institutions have all committed to the Expo to date.
“They will be coming here to be part of the Expo to look at the opportunities, but more than buying and distribution, they [will] invest in the agricultural potential of countries.” The President said, too, that these investors will put in the capital and develop the product output, targeting produce such as coffee, cocoa, spices and sugarcane, among other confirmed crops.
The President went on to state that packaging is also an important area for attracting investment, “…and that is what the CARICOM Secretariat and the technical team would be doing. Working with every single country to package what we want…we can’t package something, and when investors come, they take 10 months to facilitate the process of getting it off the ground. That is not what we want to achieve,” the President said.
He posited, however, that the inaugural Investment Forum and Expo is critical in bringing together leaders, practitioners, farmers and others along the value chain. He said, “We as leaders in CARICOM have tied ourselves to a timeframe. That should tell you how serious we are about this. We didn’t leave this as an open-ended discussion. We have tied ourselves to that timeframe. We now look forward to the support of all of you in the region, in the private sector, in the field of food production and distribution to work with us.”
As for Guyana, “I want to say to you, you not only have our commitment from Guyana; as far as our resources would allow us, we are going to provide the financing that is required to help to support the implementation of this strategy because it is key for all of us.”
The inaugural Agri-Investment Forum & Expo will be held on May 19-21, 2022, under the theme: ‘Investing in Vision 25 by 2025’. Dr. Carla Natalie Barnett, CARICOM’s General Secretary, was among the regional leaders who joined the launch virtually. They included Prime Minister of the Republic of Barbados, Mia Mottley and Prime Minister, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves .

 

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