Government continues its Agri watch

Nov 20, 2022 Letters

Dear Editor,

We all know that good planning and investment by all landowners and agricultural producers can prevent flooding and protect land interests and assets. At this time in the year, this ‘planning’ is indeed vital, as the rains are in waiting, and this will affect water levels in ditches, creeks, and rivers etc.

So, Guyana must guard against increasing flood risk in areas of all kinds of farming. To this end, I see that Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, announced that some $77M has been allocated to undertake the rehabilitation works that will ‘ease the fears’ of residents of Corentyne, East Berbice, as they will adequate drainage and dams in their residential and cultivation areas.The details show that the investment will include a high-level pump to be stationed at Whim. This is to assist in the drainage of water in the Whim/Bloomfield area, , as according to the Minister, “… we know for a fact that when you look at these areas, the most flood prone area is Whim … (as) over the years, we have seen what has happened here at Whim…” The goal is that the all-important pump will be installed before year-end, and this will be the responsibility of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA).

Editor, back in October of this year, President Irfaan Ali reminded Guyanese that “Agriculture accounts for almost a quarter of the country’s non-oil Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and (very importantly) one in every eight members of the country’s employed workforce is in the agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors. This sector is also the principal source of livelihood for thousands of Guyanese households.” In other words, in the mind of the President, agriculture will be catered for. As a matter of fact, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), since being elected to office in August 2020, has invested approximately G$95 billion into the agriculture sector, and there are plans to significantly increase both public and private investments in the coming years.

However, as all know, this thrust requires cooperation and commitment from all involved, and I feel strongly that the people of Alness, Whim, Auchlyne, Letterkenny and Bloomfield will do their part. Lest those involved get sloppy, I remind readers about the June 2021 floods in Guyana. Let this soak in: According to the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), “As many as 25,000 households were affected by the widespread flooding during the that time. So, this time around, the preparation and foresight of Government must be lauded and things will be in place with the “$42M that will be spent on the cleaning of canals within the residential areas of the identified communities and $35M on cleaning canals and fixing dams in the cultivation areas.”

Yours truly,

Singh

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