- Agri. Ministry working with farmers to commence large-scale pineapple cultivation
- Residents to also commence ‘cage-culture’
Farmers from Mashabo Mission on the Essequibo Coast in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) will soon begin producing pineapple on a larger scale as the Ministry of Agriculture is scheduled to commence developmental works on 10 acres of land earmarked for the project.
Agriculture Minister Hon. Zulfikar Mustapha, on Friday, traveled to the village and told farmers and residents that systems are being put in place to commence the initiative.
The Minister’s visit follows that of H.E. President Dr. Irfaan Ali, who, last August, made several commitments to farmers and residents after several requests were made for assistance with a number of inputs to further develop agriculture in the community.
While engaging farmers, Minister Mustapha said that the community was earmarked for massive development. He also disclosed that a machine would soon be in the area to commence land clearing, after which, inputs and technical support will be provided to commence cultivation.
“Your community will not only see infrastructural development, but development that will improve your lives. When the President was here, he made several commitments and I am here today to deliver on some of those commitments. Several farmers had requested tillers so we will be handing over those tillers so that all the farmers in the community can benefit. Very soon, we will also deliver some farming tools, planting materials, and other inputs. The Commander had also made a request for assistance with a boat and engine to assist with patrolling the river in the farming areas and we’ve brought that. As it relates to the pineapple cultivation, the last time we were here, we committed to developing approximately 10 acres of land for pineapple production. The first thing is to get the land cleared. The machine will be here over the weekend and will commence clearing the 10 acres of land so that you can start producing pineapples. After that, officers from NAREI will work with you and provide technical support and planting materials. We will not stop there. When you have your cultivation going, we will work to get markets for your produce through the New GMC,” he noted.
Minister Mustapha also said that additional economic activities will also be done in the area.
“Agriculture is one of the main sources of income for you here and we will also work with you to develop additional economic activities. We recently installed a fish cage here as part of our cage culture initiative and today we’ll be adding the fingerlings to that cage. We are also looking at the possibility of cultivating red peas here. All of these things will be coming on stream soon,” he noted.
Every household also benefited from a number of Black Giant chicks as part of the ministry’s ongoing Black Giant Chicken Project which aims to develop the poultry sector in rural communities.
