Presidential Candidate for the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), Dr. Irfaan Ali has pledged that his party would make significant investments in developing 20,000 acres of land for ownership by farmers if his party wins a second term.
He said the land would be divided into three clusters. For each, Ali said recently that a set of equipment will be assigned to the farmers—giving them responsibility for reducing operational costs.
Adding to this level of capital empowerment, Ali said his government would also provide seed paddy and create drainage and irrigation to make the lands ready for farming. He also noted that Guyana will soon have its own fertilizer plant which would utilize resources from the gas-to-energy project. He said the plant would also allow for co-investment opportunities with farmers too.
Further to this, he said there would be greater tax incentives for agriculture so the banks can reduce interest rates.
He also noted that there would be investments in a control center that will be accessible via phones, serving not only Guyana but the Caribbean. “It would be a center of excellence that gives you real-time data and real-time extension services,” said Ali.
The Presidential Candidate also noted that the second term of the PPP will see a push for containerized offices for extension officers so that they could be closer to the farmers to provide support.
Regarding other plans for the rice industry, Ali said this includes establishing a price stabilization system for payments to farmers by millers, more investments in modern drying and storage facilities, and supporting systems of integrated farming where a portion of the rice farmer’s area can be used to cultivate high-value, high-yielding crops—thereby reducing risk, increasing productivity, and diversifying and expanding the income base.
