…food goals
As you Dear Readers would know, your Eyewitness was pretty excited after CariCom decided, back in 2020, that its 15 member-states were gonna immediately start reducing their food import bills. They came up with a catchy slogan – “25 by 25” – to signal their goal of reducing those imports by 25% within 5 years – by 2025. While a pretty ambitious goal, it was long overdue. As colonies, we’d been forced to import, say, flour from Europe to satisfy the White Man’s tastes. They then convinced our tastebuds – which had been weaned on cassava or plantain flour – that the scraps of their breads and pastries made from flour were not only “tastier”, but “more nutritious”.
Multiply that across the (kitchen) board and you arrive at a situation where we Caribbean people would rather eat canned sardines – preserved because the White Man couldn’t always get fresh fish – instead of our local fishes available from every canal in the land!! So, it didn’t surprise anyone that while our countries were colonised to produce agriculture products – we ended up IMPORTING US $6billion worth of foods annually!! So, with Guyana having the largest blocks of agri-land in the grouping – and our folks were still willing to soil their hands in the soil – we were given the lead role in 25X25. And awaaaay we went!! All kinds of agricultural initiatives, from hydroponics and shade gardens to opening up the savannahs to soya and sweet corn – not to mention fish and black belly sheep farms – were successfully launched. We were even lauded internationally as the only country in the world that technically didn’t have to import food!!
So, your Eyewitness was kinda surprised to hear that the 25X25 initiative was now changed to “25X30” – that is, the deadline for the 25% reduction was now 2030. What happened?? Well, in a quite detailed response, the adviser to our Agri Ministry showed that we’d done quite nicely on the original goal but there were two flies in the ointment – which is as bad as being in our soup!! Firstly, with world price increases (inflation) becoming endemic, the dollar amounts of our reduction reflected nominal rather than real reductions!! A rare admission by the bureaucrats and politicians who usually puff up and gloss over every report!!
Anyhow, what your Eyewitness likes most was the second recalibration: to strategically shift the focus not on REDUCING imports – which would always remain nominal – but towards INCREASING real production targets!! But targets towards what items?? We should be working to create dishes based on our local products – and with our tourist industry bringing in people from all over the world – expose them to the world’s palates and demand!!
Look how Mexican Food has taken off!! Tacos, anyone??
…TT oil tune?
Your Eyewitness was surprised when the new TT Government’s Energy Minister announced they’re pursuing refining our share of our oil production for us. Note – “for us”. They’re not planning on buying our oil like other customers who’re doing so right now – but we’d be shipping our oil to them to refine and they’ll ship the refined products – like gasoline – back to us for a fee.
Now, a number of things. Back in 2022, the then-Rowley Govt made the same proposal but it was shot down by our own Minister of Natural Resources who pointed out we had our own plans for our own refinery!! And we’d received at least nine proposals. The plan is to use oil refining as the beginning of the industrialization of Berbice – where the refinery would be located, as well as the second GtE facility.
But more fundamentally, TT’s refinery is geared to handle sour, heavy crude and would be uncompetitive to deal with our sweet, light crude!! Gwan da side TT!!
…world order??
The Repair Campaign is going to Europe in pursuit of reparations for Caribbean African Slavery. They’re demanding technology transfers and investments to tackle health crises and illiteracy.
Too bad Europe had shifted right – even before their economic woes.
