Guyana Chronicle Agri Supplement 19-05-2022

GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

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Caribbean Food Insecurity PostCOVID and Ukraine Part 6: Planting Today to Better Harvest Tomorrow!

By Earl Bousquet TODAY’S Agricultural Investment Forum and Exposition is not just a Guyana affair, as it has also attracted participation

by Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders from Antigua & Barbuda, Barbados, The Bahamas, Belize, Dominica, Saint Lucia, Trinidad & Tobago, as well as the Premier of Montserrat.

The event will display and feature aerial survey equipment, fertiliser technology and land management tools, and involve financial institutions, international agricultural projects, logistics companies and agro-processors.

CARICOM’s Assistant Secretary General, Joseph Cox, sees today’s event as “a stepping stone for the region to capitalise on major

investments and opportunities to elevate its value chain,” as well as “a prayer of hope” and “an opportunity for effective partnership between the state, governments and private sectors.”

“We are too blessed to be stressed and too rich to be poor,” he said, insisting “It’s full time that we capitalise on the opportunities…

“We have opportunities… to move up the value chain,” Cox said Monday, hinting the event can also possibly be an annual regional activity to support and enable the Caribbean’s agricultural sector to “retool and reshape where appropriate,” so it can “continue to be a part of the regional agenda”.

Held under the theme “Investing in Vision 25 by 2025’, the double-barreled event will also attract at

least 12 donor agencies, 550 delegates and 100 exhibitors and is anticipated to be the largest-ever gathering of regional Heads of Government with investors, donors and agriculture stakeholders.

Guyana is leading CARICOM’s efforts to reduce its US $6 Billion food-importation bill over the next three years by 25 per cent and coming ahead of observance of World Food Security Day on June 7, the event is also expected to encourage potential investors to contribute to food and nutrition security and identify specific areas where investment is needed to overcome existing structural and operational challenges.

The prospects look good.

Guyana is currently experiencing an unprecedentedly high level of foreign

investment, the Bank of Guyana recently reporting a capital account surplus of US $1.7 Billion in 2021, reflecting the net flow of Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) worth US $4.4 Billion.

The Dr Irfaan Ali administration is also offering tax concessions for priority private investment projects -- and actually approved 48 in 2021 that can create over 2,300 jobs.

Interestingly, 17 of the approved private investments are in Services and another 17 in Manufacturing, but only five in Agriculture, with four in Mining, three in Forestry, two in Tourism, two in ICT and only one in Energy.

The figures show that foreign and local investors have not been as interested in putting their money into Agriculture as in Oil and Gas, Services and Manufacturing, which tend to yield faster profitable Rates-ofReturn.

21st Century agriculture has the capacity to make the industry more attractive to local and foreign investors, but they naturally tend to be both cautious and careful, resulting in regular food production not being a favorite investment choice.

Perhaps the greatest challenge for the stakeholders gathering from today is to show and convince local, regional and international investors that betting on agriculture can be more profitable and to break with tradition by getting bullish on a traditionally slow sector.

The perfect reasons exist, starting with the increas-

ing need for food driven by increasing global poverty over the past decade and accelerated by recent developments, from Climate Change to COVID to the Ukraine War. UNICEF, this week, reported over 40 million children under the age of five now suffer from malnutrition globally, while hundreds of thousands of displaced people have had access to basic foods curtailed by wars between neighbouring states in Africa and Asia, just as in Europe today.

While millions of children in poor and developing nations face dying from hunger, millions in the United States are briefly affected by shortages of baby milk formula as a result of the global wheat crisis.

And food is also being weaponized in the economic war against Russia, with one popular global hamburger chain employing over 62,000 Russians being forced to close down to implement politically-motivated sanctions against the government in Moscow.

Increasing food prices and decreasing availability of three-meals-a-day for many everywhere are also forcing people to make new and better eating choices, particularly in keeping with what they can afford.

Science and Technology, Digitisation and other modern Century 21 applications to, and variations of, modern agriculture do allow for production of more and better food at affordable prices, but it’s not in the instinctive habit of investors to settle for lower rates-of-return

when they can seek or demand higher.

The quick and healthy returns always expected from FDIs in developing countries naturally allows investors to set prices at levels that will meet their promised and/or guaranteed expectations, but which are not always measured by the affordability of the public purse.

In this case, the challenge is to get or encourage local investors to see the need for and profitability of investing in the New Agriculture, not by totally dumping the old for the new, but by also encouraging traditional farmers to see the positive prospects in embracing change that works for them -- and for consumers, which they also are.

By Sunday, the forum and expo will have ended and the reviews will take place alongside plans for quick-enough implementation of new agreements and/ or arrangements arrived at.

But until and unless the new investments are shaped to reduce dependence on importing foods that can be grown in Guyana and the Caribbean and regional governments do more at home to lower food imports and increase local production of better foods at affordable prices, while also working equally-hard to change consumption patterns for the better, the next forum and expo will be about how to achieve the 25 per cent reduction in the regional food import bill in just two years.

Here’s to this first regional parley on food for thought for more and healthier Caribbean foods!

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GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

Investment in Agriculture

The dredging of the mouth of the Pomeroon River will open up some 8,000 acres of land for rice and cash crop farmers and residents

THE Caribbean region is striving to achieve at least 25 per cent reduction in the regional food import bill by 2025 (25 by 25), which is expected to take massive investment from both the private and public sectors.

Here in Guyana, the government is doing its part to make the agriculture landscape all the more conducive for private investment, with massive spending to improve agriculture infrastructure across the country.

Under the Ministry of Agriculture, some $2.612 billion in agriculture-related projects are ongoing across nine of the 10 administration regions, the biggest of which is the $569 million dredging of the Pomeroon mouth which is going to open up 8,000 acres of land for rice and cash crop farmers and residents.

This is all part of the works that include the sum of

farm to market roads and drainage and irrigation are key infrastructure and these are being given priority by the government.

“By allocating a large amount of money to drainage and irrigation that would tell you that the government has interest in helping the farmers. Without drainage and irrigation, the farmers cannot survive. You would get flooding, you would get drought or other issues. By having a good NDIA programme it’s a boost to the farmers so that they don’t have to get these things themselves and burden themselves financially,” said Halim Khan, President of the Region Three Chamber of Commerce.

Region Three is among those regions that depend heavily on farming activity in the regional economy.

There is currently approximately $473 million in

Park which will benefit approximately 2,000 acres of both farm and residential land and another pump station at A-Line Sluice, costing $80 million, which will offer benefits to over 3,000 acres of residential and farmlands for cash crops and rice in Versailles and the back of Canal No. 1 Polder.

Another $200 million in projects are also being done at Canals Polder, Kamuni, Henrietta in Leguan and Friendship, Wakenaam and Vriesland on the West Demerara Region Two, another primary farming region will be benefitting from a total of $1.154 billion in works.

Aside from the dredging of the Pomeroon River, there is the $150 million rehabilitation of the pump station at Andrews, a $108 million sluice at Capoey and the $105 million empoldering of

Billions of dollars are being spent to upgrade farm to market roads

$22 billion that was budgeted for the Ministry of Agriculture in the 2022 budget.

When it comes to farming, proper roads, particularly

agriculture projects currently ongoing in that region.

This includes the construction of the $200 million pump station at Greenwich

farm lands in upper and lower Pomeroon and Supernaam creek.

In Region Five, another $626 million in works

are also ongoing. The construction of two heavy-duty bridges in Mahaica, at a cost of $32 million, will make it easier for farmers to access their farmlands and reduce the distance of transporting their produce to the market.

“With cultivation there must be proper drainage and irrigation. We have seen that the government has taken a bold step to ensure that Region Five, being the largest rice producing and cattle rearing region in the country, have the drainage network across the region cleared on time. The irrigation structures too, and to improve on the drainage capacity by installing additional pumps in the different areas,” Region Five Regional Chairman, Vickram Ramphal, commented, as he spoke of the commendable work being done in his region to improve lives for the many farmers.

Region Five is Guyana’s largest rice producing and cattle rearing region.

Below we outline the ongoing major agricultural projects being done in the various regions.

REGION TWO Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $1.154B Project: Dredging of the Pomeroon river mouth Cost: $569 million Beneficiaries: 8,000 acres of rice and cash crop farmers’ land, residents Project: Rehabilitation of Pump Station at Andrews Cost: $150 million Beneficiaries: 5,000 acres of rice land Project: Construction of Pump Station at Charity Cost: $87 million Beneficiaries: 400 families and farmers by the draining 200 acres of cash crop farmlands Project: Rehabilitation of Pump Station, Cozier Cost: $80 million Beneficiaries: 2,500 acres of cash crop farmland

Project: Construction of Sluice at Capoey Cost: $108 million Beneficiaries: 2,000 acres of rice land Project: Construction of Access Road at Onderneeming Cost: $55 million Beneficiaries: 10,000 acres of cash crops and permanent crops’ farmland Project: Empoldering of farm lands in upper and lower Pomeroon and Supernaam creek Cost: $105 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 1,500 acres of prime agricultural lands REGION THREE Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $473 million Project: Construction of pump station in the Greenwich Park area Cost: $200 million Beneficiaries: ApproxContinued on page 10

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Linden youth pushes more soil-less farming

By Shari Simon WINSTON Brian Camacho loves plants. As a child, while spending time outside in the yard assisting his mother, he became fascinated with how plants grow, the unique shapes, textures and colours of different plants, and gardening activities needed to care and maintain them.

He often found ways to creatively mix, match and organise the varieties of plants they had, particularly flowers, and soon began to eagerly examine any space around him to see whether plants being grown were healthy and thriving.

As the years progressed, Camacho developed an immense interest in the technology field, particularly electrical engineering and powering homes.

This interest complemented his childhood love of plants and passion to develop an environmentally sustainable system for plant growth, especially after making a

critical observation one day.

“I noticed that bushes in the trenches were greener than the bushes on the land,” said 22-year-old Camacho, who is from Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice), and also works offshore as a Roust-About on the Stena Carron for Stena Drilling, a client of Strategic Recruitment Solutions (SRS) in Guyana’s burgeoning oil and gas industry.

Eventually, he researched the reason, which led him to build a hydroponics garden called Aqua Greens.

Hydroponics gardening is a soilless technique for growing and cultivating plants in nutrient-rich water. Camacho claimed that hydroponics is actually an early agricultural practice that was used by the Mayan peoples to grow food.

“Once maintained properly, a hydroponics system produces premium crops,” he shared before adding, “It is modernised now; it is a healthy, fast and clean way to Winton Brian Camacho, owner of Aqua Greens

Four-week-old pak-choi grown in a hydroponic garden

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GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

Linden youth pushes more ...

From page 4A grow certain crops. You don’t need pesticides. You don’t need to add fertilisers to the plant to boost it. All the nutrients are already in the water.”

The first crop Camacho planted in his hydroponics garden was pak-choi. He then planted lettuce, celery, cabbage, ‘thick-leaf’ callaloo and tomatoes.

“I am testing out broccoli and it is coming really good!” he remarked. He enjoys plant-

technique implemented that is programmed to cut off, and conserve power and still achieve the intended harvest.

Much of Camacho’s success today however, is a result of trial and error. After failing repeatedly due to a flaw in the system’s design and other obstacles, he was determined to persevere and continue planting.

With a goal in mind, he went on to study Hydroponics and Aquaponics at the Aquat-

Brian Camacho’s hydroponic garden set-up

ing a variety of crops, and sharing his harvest with family, friends and neighbours.

Due to being a low maintenance system, he can leave his plants while working offshore and return to harvest within a two to three-week period, depending on the crop. At the moment, he does not market his produce but plans to do so soon.

According to Camacho, the set-up for a simple hydroponics garden requires a number of resources for the system to work effectively.

This includes but is not limited to a hydroponic media box that can include rocks and pebbles, wood materials to build the structure, a container for the plants so water can flow through the reservoir, buckets or drums to use as the reservoirs, electricity, a submersible water pump as well as plant nutrients.

He opined that ideally the system should be designed to accommodate power outages as well, in order for it to retain water and keep the plants alive until power is restored.

“I am currently working on a solar powered hydroponics system,” shared Camacho.

Also, having been built using his innovative and resourceful insight, the hydroponics garden proves cost-effective and less labour-intensive as well. There is also a timed

ic Solution, a facility in Trinidad. From there, he began to apply the knowledge gained to tediously work toward restructuring his hydroponics system to adapt to Guyana’s climate. Presently, he is also completing a commercial course from the Aquaponics Facility in Australia.

By working offshore, there are numerous opportunities that have taught him how to effectively prioritise his responsibilities and work safely when transforming his hydroponics garden.

He noted that the range of expertise he is constantly gaining allows him to strategically purchase resources, and set up protective measures in order to ensure that he can test new crops and expand his garden. Currently, he is planting in his backyard and veranda, and has two gardens in Linden and Mahaica.

As the country’s agriculture sector continues to transform, Camacho wishes to encourage more Guyanese, especially young people and farmers to explore hydroponic gardening and he wants to see more support measures in place to facilitate hydroponics, “For me, I think finance is a big issue and access to sufficient land space. There can be grants for young people getting into hydroponics,”

he highlighted.

Camacho aspires to become a certified Crane Operator and, in the future, to transition from his hydroponics system to a aquaponics system. He also envisions collaborating on more agriculture-based projects nationally, regionally and internationally on various levels and do large scale farming to give back to his community.

For now, Camacho is looking forward to attending

the Ministry of Agriculture’s Agri-Investment Forum and Expo that will be held on May 19th to May 21st, 2022 at the Arthur Chung Convention Centre.

A plant lover at heart with an unrelenting spirit to research and explore all things plant related, he is excited to learn about ways to continue contributing toward boosting Guyana’s agriculture industry and promote hydroponic gardening.

Crops being grown in a hydroponic garden

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Rebranding and transforming the agriculture sector — ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’, Guyana’s first online fresh and wholefood store

By Naomi Parris WHAT started out as a simple preparation plan for family dinners, sparked the idea for a business that would evidently transform and rebrand the agro-processing industry in Guyana.

Diana Persaud, the founder of Arya’s fresh cuts incorporated, had adopted a practice of pre-preparing her vegetables before cooking a meal. This practice had become an everyday lifestyle that she decided was just too good to keep to herself.

What made Persaud’s agro-processing business so different was the fact that her products were

fresh from the farm and made cooking easier for many. With pre-packaged vegetable mixes such as the chowmein mix (bora, carrot & cabbage), fried rice mix (bora & carrot) and the seasoning mix (celery, parsley, oregano and basil), ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ quickly became a household name.

“At that time the idea was trying to prepare meals and all of that for household.”

Apart from presenting the consumer with a range of options in a single package, fresh cuts reduce wastage at the household level, since the produce is often already peeled and always cleaned. Additionally, the clear packaging allows

the opportunity to readily assess the quality of the produce being purchased.

In simple terms, ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ has been convenience in a package and, over the years, the company has expanded its product line, adding more fresh vegetables that are now easily accessible on the country’s first fresh and wholefoods online shop.

“After about seven to eight years, the product line has moved from about six products to 30 products,” Persaud said, adding: “Arya’s has moved from becoming one of the first online fresh and whole food shop where persons can buy; we have moved into restaurants.”

A glimpse of ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ online store

The birth of the company’s website started during the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic in Guyana in 2020. With the guidelines that were out in place by the health officials, ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ became one of those essential businesses that ensured that while in staying indoors consumers across the country received fresh and wholesome foods.

“The online shop first started with WhatsApp then we moved it to a website.”

While the company has its own online website and store, it still supplies local supermarkets, along with some the country’s most prestigious restaurant; so

anywhere in the country ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ can be found.

With a hard working dedicated and growing team of farmers, agro-processors and so many others ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ continues to be the number one leading provider of pre-prepared and packaged fresh vegetables and whole foods.

The company will be a part of a lineup of agro-processors that will be showcasing a variety of products at the highly anticipated Agri-investment forum and expo beginning today. The event is anticipated to be the largest gathering of regional heads, investors, donors, and

agriculture stakeholders in the Caribbean.

For ‘Arya’s Fresh cuts’ being a part of this grand event means further expansion.

“The expectation is to tap into possible leads for regional markets and, of course, see what any other local company or investors is out there coming. Perhaps we can go help them to boost operations in Guyana, whether it is the oil and gas, any other franchise or the hotel industry.”

If you are interested in the products offered, you can call 592-608-2587 or visit ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ online store at aryasfreshcut.com.

Some of ‘Arya’s Fresh Cuts’ products on the shelves of one of Guyana’s supermarkets

GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

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Snapshot of agriculture in Guyana

Snapshot of agriculture in Guyana GUYANA continues to make critical investments in order to cement its place as the bread basket of the Caribbean.

The country has been making major investments in agriculture from the private sector and government levels, with some $22 billion allocated to agriculture in the 2022 national budget.

And the investment has been yielding results. Below is a snapshot of agriculture developments in Guyana. * Flood Response: Approximately $1 billion is being spent to purchase equipment needed to enhance flood protection systems in the country. Mobile pumps are being procured to be placed at strategic locations in floodprone areas. * Earthmoving equipment such as long and short boom excavators, mini excavators, and bulldozers are also being purchased to aid in accelerating the runoff of water from the land.

* Approximately $350 million is earmarked to build a new dam on the north-eastern side of the East Demerara Water Conservancy. This will provide further protection and reduce the risk of flooding for over 300,000 residents. * Major outfall channels are being constructed in Regions Three, Five, and Six. These are being designed to replicate the Northern Relief Channel at Hope/Dochfour, East Coast Demerara, which was conceptualised and constructed by the PPP/C administration before demitting office in 2015. Had it not

been for the Northern Relief Channel, the majority of villages along the coastland in Region Four and Georgetown would have been devastated by the 2021 floods. * Increase in Farmers’ Market: An initiative whereby farmers can showcase and sell their produce directly to consumers, in large quantity and receive higher sales, and have access to a ready market. * Increase in brackish water shrimp and Fisheries: An over $50 million intervention by the government resulted in a 175 per cent increase in brackish water shrimp

production in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the first quarter of 2021. A total of 127,400 kg of shrimp was produced during the period January to March 2022 at an estimated value of approximately $153 million. The first-ever government-sponsored shrimp production project was launched in 2021 in Region Six, where 99 per cent of the shrimp farms are located, with the aim of doubling the country’s production of brackish water shrimp from 250,000 to 500,000 kilograms, thereby improving food security, livelihoods, and employment. * A $6 million Anna Regina Fish Station: works commenced to construct a concrete fish pond, shed, and fish tanks.

RICE * US$ 26,847,246 worth of paddy, rice and rice products were exported in the first quarter of the year, with a new high yielding variety, GRDB16, with a potential of nine tonnes per hectare, with improved management practices being released. * Capital projects in 2021

for the development in the rice sector included construction of drying floors in Regions Two and Three.

Construction of drying floors in Regions Four and Five are 95 per cent and 50 per cent completed, respectively.

COCONUT * Coconut seedlings production has increased from 4,950 in the year 2020 to 33,613 in 2021. This is expected to further increase to 55,000 this year. For this year, Guyana’s coconut industry is projected to increase by 1,000 acres. However, as of the end of April 2022, the sector has realised a growth of 391 acres which is equivalent to 39 per cent of the target. In addition, 72 new coconut farmers have joined the industry. * Guyana earned approximately G$2.5 billion from the exportation of coconuts and their byproducts. Exportation from dried coconut alone generated G$1.8 billion while the exportation of virgin coconut oil ‘raked in’ G$685 million. * Projection for the increase of 1,000 acres nationally for 2021 was surpassed by 105 per cent. The coconut

industry expanded by 2,005 acres during this period, with an additional 117 new farmers coming on board.

GLDA * Introduction of Livestock Information System - 155 tablets (five rugged and 150 ordinary tablets) were imported and offline and online systems for livestock data collection are presently being tested. * Introduction of a hybridized breeding programme to boost the swine industry.

Procurement of 19 breeding pigs, two L-Line breeding boars, 12 A-Line breeding sows, and three terminal breeding boars * Expansion of the Artificial Insemination Programme to sheep and goat producers.

One laparoscope and one semen analyser, seven breeding rand, two breeding Does were imported to enhance the agency’s capacity to provide this service. * Procurement of one allin-one chicken incubator and hatchery for the hatching of black giant chicken. * Procurement and importation of three breeding

GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

Snapshot of agriculture...

bulls, two new breeds (Red Brahman and Charolais) being introduced.

NAREI * $15.8 million for the acquisition of shade house materials and sprinkler hoses. Community seedling nurseries were established to produce 40,000 seedlings. * Planting of mangrove at Aberdeen/Colombia, Essequibo Coast, Region Two. Quinoa Cultivation: A committee comprising of NAREI, UG and the Quinoa Growers of Guyana has evaluated ten accessions of Quinoa in Guyana to determine its production and productivity. The committee will be acquiring new germ-

plasm materials early next year, which will be suitable for Guyana’s ecological zone. * Cassava trials were done in regions Four and Three for five improved sweet cassava varieties.

The data acquired has assisted NAREI in improving agronomic practices for the commodity to improve production. * Black pepper: In 2021, 5,214 cuttings were generated. Of the amount, 2,179 were distributed to farmers in Regions One, Four, and 10. In addition, 13 acres of gliricidia standards were planted which will be used for trailing black pepper veins. In 2022, the Unit will

be expanding the cultivation by six acres in Regions One and 10. 43,770 seeds (vegetables and orchard) were produced, 195,121 seedlings were distributed. * Construction of approximately 100 shade houses * At Ebini, nine horticultural crops -Breadfruit, Citrus, Passion fruit, Cherry, Saijan, Star fruit, Pomegranate, Sapodilla, and Pond apple) were introduced to add to the existing gene pool. * Corn varietal trials were conducted at Parika Backdam with three local and one Belizean variety.

Production levels varied from 1650 to 2950 kg/ha.

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Investment in...

From Page 3

imately 2000 acres of both farm and residential land Project: Construction of Pump station at A-Line Sluice, WBD Cost: $80 million Beneficiaries: 3,000 acres of residential and farmlands for cash crops and rice in Versailles and the back of Canal No. 1 Polder Project: Drainage Improvement at Canals Polder, WBD Cost: $80 million Beneficiaries: 3,000 acres of residential and farmlands for Cash crops and permanent crops.

Project: Construction of Control Structure and Revetment at Kamuni, WBD Cost: $16 million Beneficiaries: 1,000 acres of farm land Project: Rehabilitation of Drainage Structure at Henrietta, Leguan Cost: $17 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 1,500 acres farmland

and residential area creating opportunity for farmers and a better life for residents Project: Construction of New sluice At Friendship Wakenaam – Cost: $80 million Project: Construction of drainage structures at Vriesland Cost: $40 million REGION FOUR Total Costs of Ongoing Projects: $60 Million Project: Rehabilitation of Alliance bridge Cost: $13 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 250 acres of farmlands. As a result, abandoned land will be resuscitated, resulting in an increase in agriculture production Project: rehabilitation of culverts in Diamond Cost: $14 Million Beneficiaries: Residents of the Diamond area Project: Construction of Access road to Hope Drainage Structure Cost: $33 Million

Billions of dollars are also being invested to improve drainage and irrigation throughout the country

Beneficiaries: Residents and farmlands REGION FIVE Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $626M Project: Construction of a pump station at Cottage, WCB Cost: $200 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 38,600 acres of farmland, and the residents between the Mahaica and Mahaicony River Project: Construction of Mahaicony Creek Right Bank, Farm to Market Road Cost: $233 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 10,000 acres of farmlands Project: Rehabilitation of Union Sluice Cost: $20 million Beneficiaries: 20,000 acres of farmlands Project: Construction of Mahaicony Creek Right Bank, Farm to Market Road, Mahaicony Creek-Phase 2 Cost: $65 million

Beneficiaries: Opening up 30,000 acres of land Project: Construction of Onverwagt Access Road Extension Cost: $108 million Beneficiaries: Over 12,000 acres of farmland REGION SIX Total Costs of Ongoing Projects: $196M Project: Construction of Pump Station at Black Bush Polder Cost: $150 million Beneficiaries: Black Bush Front lands Project: Construction of Farm to Market Road - Albion, Chesney & Hogtown Cost: $26 million Project: Rehabilitation

of Drainage channels in BPP Cost: $20 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 5000 acres of rice land REGION SEVEN Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $20M Project: Rehabilitation of Culverts Cost: $20 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 5000 residents REGION EIGHT Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $20M Project: Drainage & irrigation works Cost: $20 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 2000 residents

REGION NINE Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $10M Project: Drainage & irrigation works Cost: $10 million Beneficiaries: Approximately 2000 residents REGION 10 Total Cost of Ongoing Projects: $253M Project: Construction of Drainage & Irrigation Structures at West Watooka, Linden Cost: $53 million Beneficiaries: Over 1200 acres of farmland

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GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

Seed biodiversity: The life insurance of our food production (FAO) HUMANS rely on a shockingly low number of plants for the majority of our daily calories. Of the thousands of fruit and vegetable species cultivated for food, fewer than 200 make up a substantial part of food produced globally.

But what if climate change, invasive species, pollution, city sprawl or overuse of land cause these species to weaken, lowering their ability to produce or survive into the future?

Thousands of plant species and varieties that fed our ancestors are already extinct, and we are losing more every day. Diversity is our food’s life insurance.

It is crop biodiversity that keeps our food systems strong and resilient against these real and menacing threats.

Indigenous and local communities around the world are the major conservationists of agrobiodiversity. They have deep, traditional knowledge of different crop varieties and how to farm them. Yet, these communities themselves are often vulnerable, living in areas particularly exposed to climate change or subject to degraded resources.

The Benefit-sharing Fund, established through the FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, supports these farmers in developing countries to safeguard and use plant genetic diversity for food security and help these communities cope with climate change.

The collaboration is also a vital way of preserving indigenous knowledge and promoting access and exchange of resilient crop varieties, adapted to their needs.

Here are five examples of ongoing Benefit-sharing Fund projects and the importance of seed biodiversity.

1. PROTECTING NATIVE CROP VARIETIES IN ECUADOR In the district of Cotacachi in the Ecuadorian Andes, family farming, mostly

The Benefit-sharing Fund has helped communities identify local rice varieties that are high-yielding while also being tolerant to drought and excess water (FAO)

led by women, is the main source of food and income.

The area is a microcenter of agricultural diversity due to its traditional crops adapted to the Andean high altitudes, and it was recently designated as an FAO Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System.

Despite the wide availability of natural resources, the 45 indigenous communities in this area are contending with climate change and land degradation, deteriorating the availability of native crops.

Through the Union of Farmer and Indigenous Organizations of Cotacachi, the Benefit-sharing project is working with these communities to address the loss of local crop diversity and identify varieties that are adapted to climate change.

Two bio-knowledge centres are being established to facilitate access to locally adapted seeds, and 30 farmers are being trained as seed producers.

The project is benefitting more than 1 500 farmers and reintroducing native and better-adapted plant species for household consumption and commercialisation.

2. DEVELOPING DROUGHT AND DISEASE-RESISTANT COWPEA VARIETIES IN GHANA The cowpea, recognised for its nutritional benefits and ability to grow in sandy, semi-arid soils, is an essential crop for the communities living in the coastal savannahs of Ghana.

It is an affordable, protein-rich food relied on by over 70 per cent of the country’s population. However, the parasitic witchweed (Striga gesnerioides) is severely threatening its production, leading to 80100 per cent of yield losses.

Through the University of Cape Coast, the Benefit-sharing Fund carried out a detailed assessment of different types of cowpeas that led to the development, registration and release of seven new drought-tolerant, striga-resistant cowpea varieties.

In an approach that brought together researchers, scientists, farmers, breeders, technicians, producers and governmental officials, these varieties are now being cultivated and consumed by over 1 000 farmers and their families with an average increase in income of 45 per cent.

3. UNCOVERING RESILIENT TARO SPECIES IN MALAYSIA Taro is a root vegetable that has been used widely for food, fodder and medicinal purposes throughout Africa, South Asia and Oceania for thousands of years. Changing climatic conditions and disease have threatened the production of taro, but FAO’s Benefit-sharing project is working with farmers, through the Malaysia Agriculture Research and Development Institute, to strengthen the conservation and documentation of resilient taro varieties in Malaysia and other countries in Southeast Asia.

The project is establishing model farms and 20 Farmer Field Schools to test these new varieties. Five community seed banks are also being established so the farmers can guarantee their seeds are protected and can be shared with neighbouring communities.

200 small-scale taro farmers are involved in the project and will receive training on practices and technologies to process, store, transport and market this important crop.

4. REINSTATING LO-

CAL RICE VARIETIES IN MALI Rice and millet are staples of the Malian diet, but with 80 per cent of rainfed rice cultivation seriously affected by drought, yields have drastically reduced.

The Benefit-sharing Fund has been working with local producers and communities in 69 villages through the Institut d’Economie Rurale to preserve 266 local rice varieties and identify which species will give maximum output while tolerating drought and excessive water submersion.

Farmers are being given greater access to these varieties, and these seeds were also recently sent to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, a secure seedbank in the Norwegian arctic that acts as a failsafe for seed biodiversity in the case of damage or loss of national or international seed collections.

5. IMPROVING LOCAL VARIETIES OF WHEAT AND BARLEY IN MOROCCO Durum wheat and barley are among the staples in Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, but these countries have come to rely on

imports as their own crops have become increasingly affected by climate change, pests and disease.

High temperatures and drought have led to a buildup of salinity in the soil and groundwater, making it difficult for certain plant species to survive.

Through ICARDA – Science for Resilient Livelihoods in Dry Areas and local partners, researchers and scientists have succeeded in producing disease-free, climate resilient plants and rapidly multiplying rare plant genotypes through in-vitro culture techniques.

In these three countries, the results are being disseminated between national breeding programmes and are already helping hundreds of farming communities and the wider population.

On the International Day for Biological Diversity, May 22, 2022, the International Plant Treaty is launching a Call for Proposals for the fifth funding cycle of the Benefit-sharing Fund.

The Call is open to a consortium of farmers, researchers and others that will be working on innovations to enhance crop diversity management in farmers’ fields and local value chains.

The biodiversity of our fruits and vegetables is depleting at an alarming rate with devastating effects on the future of our food production.

By supporting the sustainable management of crop genetic resources in developing countries, the Benefit-sharing Fund has increased the food security and improved the livelihoods of more than one million people so far.

Together with farming communities which are all too aware of the vital role these resources play in ensuring resilient agriculture, the Benefit-sharing Fund is working to urgently preserve these living genetic resources. These seeds are resources we cannot afford to lose.

12 A GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

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14 A GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022

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16 A GUYANA CHRONICLE AGRI-INVESTMENT FORUM SPECIAL EDITION Thursday, May 19, 2022