Latest update April 23rd, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 06, 2008 AFC Column, Features / Columnists
The Alliance For Change continues to play an important role in helping Guyanese prepare for the pending Global Food Crisis through their “Seeds of Change” programme.
This week in Parliament, AFC Member of Parliament Latchmin Punalall examined another aspect of this situation and made the following presentation on the motion “The Impact of Global Food Price Increases”
“Mr. Speaker, I stand to speak on the motion the “Impact of global food price increases” presented to this honourable assembly by the Hon. Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Robert Persaud.
In the first whereas clause he outlines four factors to be responsible for global food price increases:- Increase in the price of fossil fuel; effects of climate change; increase in production of bio-fuels; a growing demand for food in large emerging economies.
Mr. Speaker, these are not factors which have come upon us overnight. Over the past many years scientists and other academics including the Holy Bible have been warning us of these situations. Unfortunately, these warnings were not taken too seriously nationally and regionally.
Had these forewarnings being heeded, which were intended to prepare us for these difficulties, there would have been preparations along the way and we would not have to be in a state of alarm today.
Mr. Speaker, On May 30, 2008 when Ambassador Odeen Ishmael spoke at the meeting of Food Security in Latin America and the Caribbean he referred to the “Jagdeo Initiative” which identified ten major constraints affecting agriculture in the Caribbean region:-
The second constraint listed in this initiative was “outdated and insufficient agricultural health and food safety systems”
The third constraint listed in this initiative was “inadequate research and development”
The seventh constraint listed in this initiative was “inadequate transportation systems”
The tenth constraint listed in this initiative was “lack of skilled and quality human resources” Mr. Speaker, these constraints, and all the others, have been lingering in our agricultural and fishing sector for some time.
Mr. Speaker, after speaking about these constraints the Government needs to put measures in place to deal with these constraints. If not what we speak and write will remain as abstracts and our people will not be helped.
Mr. Speaker, whilst it seems a bright idea to call on farmers to grow more there must be a balance to understand among other things, the psychosocial consequences of this call.
It will entail farmers spending more working hours in their farms. In some cases it will mean both parents being away from their children for longer hours.
We have seen family life crumbling in our society because of many pressures. The manifestation of this is a generation of delinquent youths who go so far as to challenge us with high powered rifles.
Mr. Speaker, while it is important for us to optimize food production it should not be at the cost of the already pressured family unit.
Mr. Speaker, the fifth whereas clause speaks of an Inter-Ministerial committee on food prices tasked with monitoring this emerging situation on a constant basis “and to make recommendations on action that may be needed to be taken to cushion the impact on the Guyanese population, especially the poor and vulnerable”.
The government has trucks that go to certain locations and sell flour at a subsidized rate but this help does not get to the poor in deep village areas. A typical example is Good Hope South on the ECD.
Villagers here will have to pay $200.00 to travel to this truck which sells at Mon Repos’ market. They will purchase a 4 kg packet for $300.00 from this truck. However, the shops in the village sell the same flour for $440.00, a difference of $140.00.
This means that when the $200.00 passage is added to the flour price it ends up more costly than what the shop next door sells it for. This is the prevailing situation in most other villages where villagers who are more vulnerable, especially where the poor live in the back areas and need to travel to these trucks.
On Fri April 25, 2008 when Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce met with food importers and flour distributors he was told that a level playing field was needed if everyone is to benefit from Government’s intervention.
One flour distributor, Hardeo Balram said to him at that meeting “We are asking for a level playing field from the flour mill, everybody gets flour at one price, and we assure the public that it will reach them at a cheaper price than they are getting now”. This would have been a more equitable approach for the government to adopt.
Mr. Speaker, if farmers are called upon to produce more they must be guaranteed of lucrative and available markets.
I draw this Assembly’s attention to Black Bush Polder in Region SIX which was once described as having the potential of feeding the Caribbean.
There was a time when mangoes were produced there in large quantities but because of bad roads and lack of markets most of the crop had to be dumped. During the mango season one could have gone there and seen heaps of mangoes rotting in farms.
It was the same situation with tomatoes. One farmer from the Soesdyke/Linden Highway told me recently that a few months ago they were getting $500.00/lb for peppers. Since the “Grow More Food” campaign started they are now getting peppers for $120.00/lb.
Residents at Paramacatoi plant cabbage, onions, Irish potatoes, carrots and many other foods which we import. One can grow all there organically where the cabbage weighs 10 lbs.
However, because of the absence of infrastructure, processing and storage facilities, production is stagnated in Paramacatoi and other areas in the hinterland.
Mr. Speaker we need to promote the establishment of agro industries to take off farmers produce if we expect them to produce. Rather than more factories being established we have seen a dwindling away of factories. We had thirteen functioning sugar factories at nationalization.
Today there are only eight and they are in the red. Cane cultivation areas were converted into residential areas and there has been no cultivation of virgin lands to cushion this. Little islands such as Barbados and Trinidad have surpassed us in agricultural processing from where a lot of importation is done.
Mr. Speaker, Mr. Ambrose Evans-Pitchard, International Business Editor, writing in the Telegraph (UK) said “The UN says it takes 232 kg of corn to fill up a 50 liter car tank with petrol (ethanol).
That is enough to feed a child for a year. 100 million people are tipping over the survival line”. Some of those who make up this 100 million are right here in Guyana.
They are our next door neighbours, uncles and aunts, brothers and sisters. Some of these folks only see a few thousand, maybe as little as $5,000.00 per week.
A small household of two adult parents and two children below ten years need at least $1,000.00/day for basic food such as rice, vegetables, bread or flour, and a little stew or curry.
This does not include any significant portion of fish or meat, and does not involve preparation by use of a gas stove. Of course we know that there are many larger families. How do they survive?
They don’t. They merely exist, sometimes by drinking only water and having a very sparing meal. Red Thread, in a paper published on Feb, 2008 setting out the monthly expenses for a family of ten needs $81,257.66.
This sum does not include medical expenses, recreation or emergencies. Mr. Speaker, Guyanese have been a people who consume comparatively little compared to other nations, yet we work very hard and are a contented people. We boil a little rice and eat it with whatever little is available.
We are not folks who look out for a quarter pound of meat or fish in every meal. We are not the kind of folks that look forward to a three or four course meal thrice daily. However, the little that we are accustomed to exist on is very hard to acquire.
We are calling for the authorities to give us a better deal where food prices are concerned and we know that the government has the capability to do more and should do more for the people of Guyana. We are also asking the Government to drop the VAT.
Mr. Speaker, Guyana, unlike many other nations, is still blessed with many natural resources which are beneficial for food production. We still have fertile lands, many fresh water rivers, sunshine and rain.
However it is one thing for us to have the potential to produce and quite another thing for us to actually produce.
Mr. Speaker the AFC supports the motion in principle and would expect support for the amendment proposed by AFC member Honourable Mr. Raphael Trotman.
Mr. Speaker Ps145:15-16 declares “The eyes of all wait upon thee (Almighty God); and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfieth the desire of every living thing”.
May all the members of this honourable house join hearts and hands to work within this divine plan for Guyana and the development of food security in the Region. May Almighty God Bless Guyana to become the breadbasket of the Caribbean.”
LISTEN HOW JAGDEO WILL MAKE ALL GUYANESE RICH!!!
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