“Do not to fall prey to the confusion being spread by the opposition” – Min. Ramjattan cautions Woodley residents
– Coalition Govt ‘right-sized’ the sugar industry – residents hear
– ‘it was the opposition that closed several sugar estates that were unprofitable in the past’
– under the Coalition Govt, many ex-employees are prepared for alternative employment
– Ministry of Finance’s 2019 mid-year report states the industry has recorded a cash surplus of $843M
DPI, Guyana, Sunday, August 18, 2019
“Do not to fall prey to the confusion being spread by the opposition. They are attempting to use the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) to create division among Guyanese,” urged Public Security Hon. Minister Khemraj Ramjattan.
He was addressing the residents of Woodley Park during a community.
Setting the record straight, the minister explained that it was the Coalition Government’s interventions that saved the sugar industry. He reminded that it was the opposition that closed several sugar estates that were unprofitable in the past.
“It is the PPP/C government were the ones that closed down Diamond, was the ones that closed down Leonora, was the one that closed down two other estates because they were becoming unprofitable.”
Minister Ramjattan pointed to the paying of severance to the former sugar workers and, more so, the skills training that was provided through the Industry Skills Training Enhancement Programme (IN-STEP) where many of the ex-employees are prepared for alternative employment.
“We are retraining some of these workers while some others have already gone to the other estates that needed their labour. That is how you run a country,” he stated.
Minister Ramjattan asserted that since the government decided on right-sizing the sugar industry, it has made significant strides in its production and exportation of sugar for the first half of 2019.
According to the 2019 mid-year report, prepared by the Ministry of Finance, the industry has recorded a cash surplus of $843M.
During the first half of this year, GuySuCo was able to export 37,836 tonnes of sugar, with 33,263 sold to the European Union (EU) market, at a price much higher than budgeted. This saw an increase to $1.3Billion in export sales.