Guyana eyes Zimbabwe market for rice exports

The Guyana Government is looking to tap into the Zimbabwe market for its rice exports, according to the Agriculture Ministry. This interest was conveyed by Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha during a recent meeting with Non-Resident Ambassador of Zimbabwe to Guyana, Patrick Mutasa. “During the engagement, the officials discussed areas of mutual interest, including capacity building for the production of tropical wheat in Guyana and the supply of rice to Zimbabwe’s market,” a brief statement from the Ministry noted.
Amid a surplus of production due to the increase in rice yields, the Government has been exploring new markets for the country’s rice. Already, it has engaged with countries in the Middle East and Europe. Rice production has climbed steadily from approximately 500,000 tonnes in 2020 to 810,000 tonnes in 2025, marking one of the strongest periods of expansion for the industry in Guyana’s history. The Government’s long-term goal is to push national rice production to one million tonnes as part of broader efforts to strengthen food security and support CARICOM’s target of reducing the region’s food import bill by 25 per cent by 2030.
In previously addressing the issue of oversupply of rice on the global market, President Dr Irfaan Ali announced plans to construct a massive drying floor and storage facility along the Essequibo Coast. In fact, some $1 billion has been budgeted this year for the construction of these climate-controlled silos, which would have the capacity to store some three million bags of paddy.

Guyana-Zimbabwe
Meanwhile, Minister Mustapha has said he welcomes the continued partnership and expressed his commitment to further strengthening cooperation between Guyana and Zimbabwe, particularly in the areas of agriculture, trade and technical development. On Wednesday, President Ali accepted the Letter of Credence from Mutasa. In a brief statement, he noted that the duo discussed building on their countries’ strong historical ties and deepening cooperation in food and energy security, climate resilience, biodiversity, technology, education and health.
“I also look forward to strengthening people-to-people ties and expanding private sector engagement between Guyana and Zimbabwe,” President Ali said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Hugh Todd, also received a courtesy call from Ambassador Mutasa.
Ambassador Mutasa is the successor of Ambassador Paul Chikawa who was accredited on August 27, 2024. Guyana and Zimbabwe established diplomatic relations on June 19, 1980.