Essequibo farmers benefit from $18M equipment to boost production

On Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha distributed several pieces of equipment to small-scale farmers from Anna Regina and other surrounding areas on the Essequibo Coast, Region Two.

The equipment, which are valued at approximately $18 million, included tractor-driven pumps, tillers, mist blowers, and threshers.
Minister Mustapha in a press release said the equipment will assist farmers with making their farming activities less labor intensive.

“While we are investing in the infrastructure and other equipment to enhance your livelihoods, these interventions are important to assist you with boosting your production. If you take a look at the traditional sector, production is increasing. While this is happening, we are also diversifying and assisting farmers with producing new crops. We are doing this because, as a country, we have to reduce our dependency on imported food,” Minister Mustapha stated.

A total of fifteen water pumps, seven tillers, twenty mist blowers, and five threshers were distributed to the farmers valued at approximately $7 million.

Minister Mustapha also said that while flooding continues to affect several vulnerable areas across the country, local authority bodies and municipalities will each benefit from pumps to assist with managing flooding.

“One of the things that has been affecting us is flooding. So, through the NDIA, the Ministry of Agriculture has procured 100 tractor-driven pumps which will be distributed to all the local bodies across the country,” he stated.

Meanwhile, at Aurora Village, Minister Mustapha handed over a tractor to representatives from several farmers groups from the region.

During a previous visit to the region, Minister Mustapha met with a group of farmers who indicated that they needed assistance to expand their production.