Gov’t taking ‘practical steps’ to promote success in every industry – President Ali

In spite of global challenges that hindered progress earlier this year, the government remains committed to fostering growth across all industries.

During a live broadcast on Saturday, President, Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali discussed key findings from the Mid-Year Report, highlighting obstacles and outlining strategic initiatives to overcome them.

In the sugar sector, the president underlined several hurdles his government has had to overcome, which include the neglect suffered by the sector at the hands of the previous government and adverse weather conditions during the first half of the year. As a result of these challenges, the president stated that the industry saw a 60 per cent contraction.

Nevertheless, the revitalisation of the sugar industry remains high on the government’s agenda, as it continues to invest in improving the management and production architecture of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

President Ali said that seven technical persons are expected from India, specialising in mechanisation, field management, agro-management and crop management.

“These technical people will be embedded in the management system to support the further mechanisation and transformation of the industry,” the president said.

Already, 12 Cuban specialists are lending support to the industry.

“When we look at what is projected in the second crop of this year, and that crop is ongoing now, and we have seen the improvement in the second crop, and this is because of the investment we have made,” he added.

This second crop is expected to produce 800,000 tonnes of cane. Additionally, to expand the production of value-added sugar products, new packaging plants are under construction at Albion and Blairmont Sugar Estate.

President Ali noted that 43 per cent of the sugar industry cultivation is mechanised, while GuySuCo has restarted the planting of sugar cane at Skeldon, which will supplement cultivation at Rose Hall and Albion estates.

These measures are intended to streamline and boost production. The government is optimistic that the industry will rebound with its second crop, and this expansion will seep into the first crop of 2025.

Meanwhile, in the poultry sector, President Ali highlighted several global challenges that have affected the sector’s performance, including new diseases, as well as transportation and logistics issues.

“When you look at the livestock industry, we are also taking concrete steps. The local poultry producers are in their third generation of revitalisation and reinvestment,” the head of state added.

Large-scale poultry investors and farms across the country are incorporating technology in their operations, and investing in modernised tunnel houses and other measures to reduce mortality and increase production.

President Ali said that this is key, especially against the backdrop of exponential hike in demand for poultry.

With 94,000 hatching eggs produced so far this year, President Ali assured that the government will continue to work aggressively to improve the performance of the poultry sector.

“We have set ourselves a three-year time frame to invest in the backward and forward linkages within the poultry industry, within the livestock industry generally, but within the poultry industry. And part of that investment is for us to initially become self-sufficient in hatching egg production and then moving to become a regional producer of hatching eggs,” he said.

The president said, “GLDA in collaboration with the Poultry Producers Association introduced tunnel pens and some of these pens that the poultry producers are investing in are pens that can rear 45 to 60,000 birds in a highly mechanized, complex, modernized system that reduces mortality, give greater safeguard against diseases, and ultimately would increase productivity and competitiveness.”

Notably, the rice industry grew by an estimated 17.9 per cent in the first half of the year, which, the president said, is a direct result of government investment in drainage and irrigation, as well as farm-to-market roads.

“We are hoping that with the investment in the new farm-to-market roads and the expanded drainage and irrigation system, with new acreage of land coming on stream, the production will be further increased in the coming year, in 2025,” he expressed.

The other crops subsector is estimated to have grown by 8.8 per cent in the first half of the year, with a revised growth projection of 12.7 per cent for the entire year.