Guyana is reclaiming the title “Bread basket of the Caribbean”, as the agricultural sector is rapidly approaching food security through the implementation of key initiatives such as the Farmers’ Market Day.
The event was held at the Eve Leary Police Sports Ground, Georgetown on Saturday and saw consumers flooding the gates to take advantage of the fresh agricultural produce at unbeatable prices.
This event is a result of the collaboration between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Guyana Police Force (GPF).
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha told the Department of Information (DPI) that the growth of the agriculture sector since the PPP/C came into Office, is evidence that Guyana is an agricultural giant in the production of food.
“The President is putting a lot of energy a lot of effort in terms of the investment that we have been making. When you look at the investment, we have made over the last three years, today Guyana is a force to reckon with in the production of food,” Minister Mustapha declared.
The agriculture minister further revealed that the ministry has reached its target.
“We have seen tremendous growth over the last year as a matter of fact we have reached our target. We have seen a seven per cent growth in the agriculture sector,” Minster Mustapha underlined.
In keeping with achieving the goal for the reduction of the food import bill in the Caribbean, he shared that the broader vision is for Guyana to not only produce food locally, but also export the local produce regionally.
“We want Guyana to be a hub for the production of food and also distribution. We are seeing here a number of produces that we have here not only fruits and vegetables, but if you look at the Agro processing line, it is very impressive. Things that we have been imported for centuries, we are now producing it in Guyana,” Minster Mustapha articulated.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police (ag), Clifton Hicken told DPI that the Famers’ market Day is a benefit to all stakeholders.
“They are benefitting in terms of selling the produce. The customers they are benefitting in terms of the price. We are benefitting in terms of the police force because they are seeing us in a different light and we want to have this momentum built,” Hicken said.
The commissioner thanked the agriculture minister for collaborating on bringing yet another Farmers Market to reality. The previous one saw 90 stalls and was deemed successful.
Additionally, Commissioner Hickens further stated that the Guyana Police Force (GPF) is placing more emphasis on service as they continue to build community relations and partnerships.
“We are integrating with the public through these types of activities because they are getting to meet the higher echelon of the police force. So, they can interact with all the commanders and so we can help to build this gap with members of the public,” he said.
Similarly, Deputy Commissioner, Calvin Brutus, reaffirmed the GPF efforts in bridging the gap between law enforcement and citizens.
“I was looking here as the crowd stream in and it is a fast build up. This fits nicely in our partnership arrangement where we use this forum not only for the sale of good and produce helping the farmers in Guyana but also to meet with members of the public and build that support further”
