Gov’t to set up insurance mechanism for 6,000 rice farmers

Three years after consistent global negotiations, the government has made a breakthrough, securing funding for climate insurance that will benefit some 6,000 rice farmers across Guyana.

President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali announced as he addressed a packed audience of students, teachers, officials, and community members attending the commissioning of the brand-new Christ Church Secondary School on Thursday afternoon.

The president recalled the challenges he had encountered during the negotiations. He was often told that it was impossible to secure this type of insurance due to Guyana’s vulnerability to climate change.

“I told the Minister of Agriculture, we will not fail,” the president said.

“Every single door I knocked on, every single global leader, financial institution, we went negotiating…And just today…We are right there, ink on paper, not only ready to give 6,000 rice farmers insurance over the next three years in a phased way, but I have the funding to give them that insurance,” he said.

“The world doubted us,” he said. “But when someone doubts our ability to succeed, that is our greatest energiser.”

The president also reiterated the government’s plans for coinvestment opportunities for teachers, farmers and public servants, which will increase their income through asset ownership and wealth creation.

Over the years, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration has supported the agriculture industry with billions of dollars in investment in drainage and irrigation, farm-to-market roads and other forms of support, such as the fertiliser subsidy, which has been benefiting the farming community at large.