The inaugural Farmers’ Conference began here on Monday with President Irfaan Ali indicating that an estimated 30 per cent of the applications submitted to the Guyana Development Bank (GDB) since its launch last week, are related to the agricultural sector.
‘If there is one indication as to how the policy direction is leading to a new wave of excitement, a new wave in agriculture, is this fact, that almost 30 per cent of all of the applications so far in the Development Bank is in the agriculture sector, almost 30 per cent,’ Ali said, adding that the percentage is a reflection of the growing interest in the agriculture sector, which accounts for six per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and one-fifth of the non-oil GDP.
Ali said that the agriculture sector had seen a decline in private investments in the past, with many large and medium sized farmers scaling back their operations. But now he believes there is a change.
‘Today, not only have we brought back production and instilled confidence in the system, but we are nurturing a new generation of young Guyanese who see a future in agriculture, who see a future in investing in agriculture.’
President Ali said to attract further investment to the agriculture sector; the government will be working with the local commercial banks to make additional concessions available to those in the sector.
‘We have brought all of the commercial banks together and we are currently negotiating with them to offer the same type of incentives that we offer for low-income housing to the banks for loans to agriculture so that those who want to go into more medium, large-scale production can get those loans at afford rates.’
President said Republic Bank has already agreed to set aside resources for agricultural loans at preferential rates.
‘Already, we have the commitment from Republic Bank that they are going to set aside resources for agricultural loans at a preferential rate, and we are negotiating that rate, which I hope can be announced even before the end of the conference, at the end of this week,’ President Ali said.
Demerara Bank is also offering special loans to poultry farms, and the Government is in talks with the financial institution to offer additional incentives to farmers.
‘That is what we do every single day for farmers. We work hard. We try to bring the private sector along. We improve the financial sector so that we can tackle the challenges farmers face in a multidimensional way,’ he said.
President Ali also pointed to the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) latest report on Guyana. It found that agriculture has grown by an average of 10 per cent a year since 2022 and now accounts for six per cent of GDP, or one-fifth of non-oil GDP. He said that growth is a direct result of government investment, subsidies and policies to support farmers.
‘Once we have people interested in the production of goods, especially in the agricultural sector, then what the IMF report is saying about us today will continue to expand and continue to grow,’ President Ali said.
The conference forms part of Agriculture Month being held under the theme ‘Innovate, Nourish, Grow: Building a Strong and Sustainable Guyana.’
Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said the agriculture sector remains critical to the country’s economy, and remains on par with the country’s rapid growth and development.
He urged the farmers to network and capitalize on the existing opportunities to further advance the sector.
‘Today is about something bigger. Today is about contributing to a national action plan. Today is about helping to shape the policies and programmes that will help to support thousands of farmers, create opportunities for future generations, and strengthen Guyana’s role as a leader in regional food security,’ he said.
Mustapha explained that on the regional stage, Guyana is leading CARICOM’s push towards food security through the expansion of the agriculture sector with the intention of reducing the import bill