Georgetown: Investment in agriculture is critical for the resuscitation of rural livelihoods in these times of the COVID-19 pandemic, and enabling the rural economy to recover.
This is according to Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha during his address on Day Two of the XXXVI FAO regional conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, hosted by the Government of Nicaragua.
Minister Zulfikar said that economic growth in agriculture is about three times more effective at reducing poverty and food insecurity than growth in other sectors, as most of the poorest and hungriest live in rural areas and are involved in agricultural activities.
“We must work together towards ensuring that there are sustainable agriculture policies and measures that contribute to poverty reduction in our rural communities,” he told the conference.
Therefore, he said, improving farmers’ livelihoods in rural areas, and diversifying the rural economies through the enhanced competitiveness of the agriculture sector is a priority of the Agriculture Ministry.
He emphasised that this requires working assiduously with the public and private sectors, and international organisations to implement programmes that will increase the agricultural productivity and income of farmers, not forgetting south-south cooperation and integration as an essential tool for strengthening alliances in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean.
He explained that informed policy decisions for prosperous and inclusive rural communities, improving agricultural and rural statistics is a priority of the Guyana Government.
“The Ministry of Agriculture of Guyana is, therefore, committed to working with the FAO to prepare a Strategic Plan for Agricultural and Rural Statistics. The FAO’s support to the Ministry of Agriculture to prepare a National Strategy integrating the SDGs in its National Agricultural Planning will aid the promotion of working hand-in-hand towards prosperous and inclusive rural societies in Guyana,” the minister explained.
In Guyana, he said, Agriculture Month is observed in October, and this year’s theme is “Investing in Agriculture for Poverty Reduction and Sustainable Development”.
He noted that one of the key components to strengthening the rural development agenda is the strengthening of budgets for inclusive and sustainable rural development.
“Investment in the development of public goods such as agricultural mechanisation, innovation, infrastructure, technical assistance, and access to farm-to-markets in rural areas is important for development,” Minister Mustapha said.
Realistically, he noted that it is not feasible for a government budget to sufficiently finance all the projects necessary.
Therefore, the Agriculture Minister said increased investments through enhanced international cooperation with organisations such as the FAO are welcome.
However, he said, “We are aware that funding from international organisations has its limitations, and therefore private investment and public-private partnerships are encouraged to increase the coverage of public goods and services, particularly in the rural communities.”
Noting that some of the measures are creating an enabling business environment for the private sector by reducing burdensome taxes and other budgetary support, the minister said the private sector alliance is strengthened, and it has opened internal dialogue.
“With the FAO’s support, we intend to widen this to the Caribbean and Latin American countries to supply exportable products to your countries,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Agriculture Minister said that while the sugar Industry in Guyana was once the largest employer of agricultural workers, the livelihoods of over 7,000 Guyanese sugar workers were affected by the closure of four sugar estates in the past five years by the previous Government.
“As a poverty alleviation measure, the PPP/C Government of Guyana has committed to investing in the sugar industry, reopening the closed sugar estates, bringing the industry to a break-even point, and creating many socio-economic benefits for the thousands of persons that will be re-employed,” he said.
Further, he said the Agriculture Ministry agrees with the FAO that the vision of the agricultural sector as a generator of employment must be expanded to involve related value-added sectors in food production, processing, rural services, and market access, and that these should be supported by policies that stimulate their growth through innovation and investment.
He said that Guyana stands to benefit tremendously from the emerging oil sector.
However, he said the availability of this revenue presents a challenge to the traditional agriculture sector, as it is likely to influence Guyana’s labour supply, wages and exchange rate, which could impact the competitiveness of the tradeable sectors such as rice and sugar in Guyana’s overall economy.
As a result, he explained that the Guyana Government is working towards developing better functioning institutions, training the labour force, and diversifying the agriculture-based economy.
“Changes in markets with greater access requirements, the accelerated pace of technological transformations, and demands for knowledge and management skills impose new challenges for our farming population,” Minister Mustapha said, adding:
“Technological change is one of the important challenges to be addressed if Guyana is to compete with technologically advanced nations, especially in our crops and livestock research initiatives in areas such as artificial insemination and genetic improvements. Further, technical cooperation would be welcomed, as technological changes will serve as an engine of positive transformation for rural development.”
In closing, Minister Mustapha said he supports recommendations of the 36th Session of the Regional Conference, and looks forward to continuing working with the FAO to develop sustainable rural communities that will help to achieve the SDGs, through policies that will, one day, eradicate hunger and extreme poverty.
Caribbean leaders have been very active on the floor with interventions from Ministers of Agriculture and their delegations from many of the Caribbean countries.
Some of these countries include: Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Suriname.
Delegations from the remaining Caribbean countries will make their contributions at today’s final session.
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