GuySuCo management to be reshuffled for better output – Agri. Minister

Feb 01, 2023 News

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…as House approves $4B allocation

Kaieteur News – The sum of $4 billion was approved on Tuesday by the National Assembly for the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) in a bid to boost production this year.

Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha is planning to reshuffle the management team to ensure this objective is realized.  The sugar sector has been declining over the past few years, but the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) is still confident in its plan to resuscitate the industry.

Opposition Members of Parliament on Tuesday pointed out that this sector has been constantly failing to meet production targets and requested that the subject Minister disaggregate the sum allocated.

In response, Mustapha told the Assembly that, “$1.195 billion is allocated to Rose Hall. As I mentioned, we will reopen Rose Hall (Estate) later this year- the second crop of this year you will see smoke out of the chimney of the Rose Hall Estate.”

The Minister then listed some of the equipment that would necessary for the operations at the estate. A few of these include fertilizer applicator, drainage tubes, cane punts and loaders.

He said that $539 million will be spent to complete the rehabilitation of the Rose Hall factory while another $50 million is set aside for infrastructural work in the area, such as the construction of roads.

“Now another $452 million is allocated to Albion Estate and it has here we will purchase tractor, fertilizer applicator, boom sprayer and then $300 million is allocated to the starting of the construction of the packaging plant- the first phase- at Albion,” he detailed.

Some $287 million is allocated for works at the Blairmont Estate and purchase of much needed equipment. A separate $200 million will be pumped into the Blairmont Packaging Plant the Minister clarified.

Meanwhile, the Uitvlugt Estate will receive a $56 million allocation for enhancement works.

While responding to questions from Opposition Member of Parliament (MP), Vinceroy Jordan, Mustapha explained that 75 percent of the construction work at the Rose Hall estate has been completed. Additionally, he detailed that close to 3,000 hectares of cane is ready for the second crop that will be harvested at that estate.

Jordan then told the House that even though resources continue to be pumped into the agency, GuySuCo has not been able to meet the targets. Against this backdrop – with the Opposition MPs hitting the tables in the Chambers in support- he asked the Minister whether there is a plan to change the management of the agency to see profitability and increased production.

To this end, the Minister said, “This is one of the plan as I said, and when you have plans you have to continue to update plans and one of the plan is to ensure we have these packaged sugar- lucrative sugar.”

As it regards leadership, he added, “The management of GuySuCo, yes, we have made changes. We have made changes recently and we will continue. We have moved manager, we have replaced Managers and we will continue to do that. That’s a work in progress and we will continue to bring new managers into the system to with new ideas.”

He argued that the Opposition does not want the sugar company in business as the members believe the employees are supporters of the ruling party.

Contrary to this, Mustapha told the House, “GuySuCo satisfy a number of issues in our country. The social issues, look at how many employment GuySuCo is providing, look at the village economy, look at the health facility, look at the social facilities. All those contribution GuySuCo is making to the development of our country and the honourable member is taking about profit. GuySuCo will become profitable again. We have to work…”

The sugar sector is estimated to have declined by 18.9 percent in 2022, with sugar production for the year totaling 47,049 tonnes. Government said this performance was largely due to the lingering effects of the 2021 floods, which caused lower yields per hectare and reduced cane quality, as well as technical challenges encountered in the first half of 2022.

This year, the administration believes that the subsector is projected to recover and expand by some 29.3 percent, as expressed by Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh during the presentation of the 2023 Budget.

He said, “GuySuCo anticipates higher performance from the existing estates, combined with forecasted production from the reopened Rose Hall estate later in the year. The Corporation expects output of nearly 61,000 tonnes of sugar this year.”

The sugar sector has been declining since 2019 as is understood from the Ministry of Finance 2022 Half Year Report.

An examination of the Government’s report indicates consecutive contractions for the sugar industry- which in 2019 accounted for 0.4% of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at half-year, 0.3% in 2020, 0.2% in 2021 and 0.1% in 2022.

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• agriculture, GUYSUCO, management, production, sugar

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