Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha, along with Minister within the Ministry of Agriculture, Vikash Ramkissoon, and Minister within the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, today met with rice millers as part of a series of consultations aimed at addressing matters relating to the current rice crop.
During the meeting, Minister Mustapha underscored the PPP/C Government’s significant investments in the rice industry over the last five years, noting that these interventions have resulted in increased production and improved yields nationwide.
According to the Ministry, while the millers acknowledged the government’s consistent support for the sector, they voiced concerns about the declining world market price for rice, stressing that it has hindered their ability to remain competitive against other major rice-producing countries.
Minister Mustapha disclosed that the consultations with farmers and millers will continue in the coming days, emphasising that the government wants farmers to receive a favourable price for their paddy from millers.
Dr. Singh, who joined the meeting virtually, said the rice industry is an industry that will be around for decades to come. He noted that while there may be marketing challenges, players should not adopt a short-term approach when dealing with the sector, noting that both the millers and the government have a shared interest in keeping rice farmers in business so that the sector can continue to grow.
The Minister also announced that he will be meeting with farmers from across the country in the coming days to further discuss challenges and opportunities for the sector.
Earlier this year, the government invested approximately $2 billion to provide farmers with fertilizer subsidies. For the first crop of 2025, just over $1.9 billion was also invested to ensure farmers received no less than $4,000 per bag of paddy, reinforcing its commitment to protecting farmers’ livelihoods and sustaining the rice industry as a key pillar of Guyana’s agricultural sector.
