Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud says government is doing all it could to lessen the impact of rising food prices on citizens.
Responding to questions about the effectiveness of government’s intervention, Minister Persaud said that the ‘Grow More Food’ campaign and other strategies have worked, and have led to a stabilisation of the production sectors while lessening the full impact of the global food crisis on Guyana’s booming agriculture sector.
Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud
He said that government cannot control cost of living, but can try to cushion the impact on the consumers. However, high prices for fuel and other internationally-sourced items continue to affect production levels in some sectors, Persaud admitted. So, government has been providing many materials to farmers at no cost. Farmers, he said, are encouraged to sustainably produce enough for local consumption and export, and not overproduce. This is to ensure that their produce is not wasted and markets are available for them to continue farming.
Persaud relayed his concern for consumers, whom he said should be able to access food at an affordable cost.
When questioned about what would be his explanation to the man in the street who continues to see a rise in local food prices, he said “it’s not an issue”.
Government, he said, continues to subsidise the cost of sugar and rice on the local market, ensuring affordability.
However, while this continues to benefit Guyanese, some exporters of these items have been buying rice on the local market and exporting the same to other countries. The issue has created conflict and is being rigorously addressed by the local authorities, as it could have a trickledown effect on what is supplied locally.
Persaud maintained that Guyana is food secure, and he gave high praise to government’s National Food and Security Strategy which was implemented by his ministry.
Meanwhile, Caribbean economist and Director of the Department of Government and International Studies at the University of Guyana, Professor Clive Thomas, had argued that while Guyana may be able to dampen the impact of the rising food and oil prices on the world market, there will be problems locally.
Professor Thomas said that government is paying too much attention to the local traditional sectors, instead of venturing out into other areas that could see growth and development. With new initiatives, Professor Thomas declared, this will also help to move Guyana’s economy forward and create better employment opportunities for all Guyanese.
International prices of basic food commodities have increased rapidly over the last three years.
