The agriculture sector in decline; minister totally unqualified for the job 

Dec 13, 2024 Letters

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Dear Editor,

I refer to a letter allegedly authored by one Mark Johnson (sic) captioned, “Dynamism in agriculture sector”. This is the third or fourth time I have seen this exact letter authored by different phantoms. I’m not going to analyse the idiocy of the letter and how wonderfully well the current Minister of Agriculture is doing. The man is totally unqualified to do that job, and so I turned to the statistics of the Bank of Guyana annual reports to tell the real story.

Let’s take the two biggies in our agricultural sector, remembering that it is the Minister of Agriculture who is directly responsible for them. In 2020, the sugar production was 88,840 tonnes. In 2021, the first full year of PPP administration of the sector, it dropped to 58,025 T. Up to 2023 December the production had not recovered to the 2020 total and was only 60,204 T, with an unbelievable drop to 47,049 T in 2022! Rice the same – the production in 2020 was 687,427 T. One year later, in 2021, it dropped to 558,995 T. Up to 2023, with a production of 653,706 T., it still had not recovered to the 2020 total of 687,427 T.

So, from 2021 January everything in these two major crops of our agricultural sector plummeted by nearly 35%. In rice, it was nearly the same – a drop of nearly 19%. Up to 2023 rice production was still significantly below the 2020 mark with a total production of 653,706 T.

This alone makes a farce of the statements by this phantom Johnson that “Minister Mustapha’s energetic, hands-on approach has brought renewed attention to agriculture, positioning it as a cornerstone of the nation’s economic growth. This strategic focus aligns with President Ali’s broader efforts to diversify Guyana’s economy, leveraging the country’s agricultural potential as a complement to its booming oil sector. Together, they have championed initiatives that prioritize food security, economic resilience, and sustainable development for all Guyanese people.” But there is much more.

The championed initiative referred to in that fictitious letter, informs us that food security is a cornerstone of the Mustapha plan. Let’s see.

The Bank of Guyana statistics always seeks to make the food price of a certain year as one hundred as a benchmark. In the current case, 2009 was the benchmark year. In 2009 was 100 and 2020 it was 152.5 so in Guyana, food prices rose by 152.5 in 11 years. The next year, 2021, under this MOA the index rose to 170.3, 2022. It rose again to 194.2 and in 23 it rose again to 201.6. So, in three years, under this current administration, the food cost index rose by a whopping 49 nearly the same rise as from 2009 to 2020. Noteworthy also, is the fact that from 2009 to 2023 the food price index rose by over 100%. 100 to 201.6.

This same phenomenon of food prices increases is across the board. For example, for meat, fish, eggs, the index was 100 in 2009 was 205 in 2020 and in 2023 it was 284.2. Today therefore, the price for these essential items rose by nearly three times from 2009 to 2023.

For vegetables and vegetable products which was 100 in 2009, rose to 191.3 by 2020 and in only two/three years, 2021 to 2023, it rose to an astounding index of 320.9. More increase in the three years of alleged inspired leadership, than in the previous 11 years 2009 to 2020. The only stone I see is the one tied around the poor Guyanese necks.

Just to see what the other sectors are doing for the purpose of comparison clothing, which was 100 in 2009, was 89 in 2020 i.e., it went down, and even in 2023, the clothing index was 88.7 – still below the benchmark year of 2009.

According to these statistics, and numbers don’t lie. We are not making any progress as an agricultural country, prices are increasing illogically in the face of the massive expenditures allocated ostensibly to make it more economical to grow our crops. For example, we see the following in our local media: “Despite a budgetary allocation of $33.2 billion in 2023, the Agriculture sector saw a total expenditure of $60.4 billion” and in 2024 they got $97.6 billion. Editor, I have seen absolutely no evidence that it was well spent and the BOG numbers agree with me. Repeatedly we see the PPP boasting about how much they have spent. Their supporters apparently don’t need to see any results for it, and so the band plays on with the same tune.

Sincerely,

Tony Vieira

(The agriculture sector in decline; minister totally unqualified for the job )

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• Dynamism in agriculture sector, Minister of Agriculture, Mustapha plan, sugar production, The agriculture sector in decline

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