Lower EBB farmers call for emergency clearing of canals

…say Government doing good job, but more could be done

Residents of Lower East Bank Berbice communities in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) have expressed concern over what they term inadequate support from Government, and have highlighted that floodwaters have been hampering their advancement in the farming sector.
With these residents being mostly farmers, when
Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha met with them recently at Sisters Village Primary School, the predominant concern expressed
was their perception of inadequate support from Government.
Minister Mustapha thus pointed out that, over the past four years, Government has spent billions of dollars to enhance infrastructure and open up land for farmers to utilise along the East Bank Berbice corridor.
The farmers, however, countering that not much has been done for residents of Sisters Village, claimed the drainage infrastructure there is adequate.
Farmer Gorden Sam of Sisters Village, a member of the Rotterdam-Bellview Coop Society, is contending that cash crops are being affected by flood waters.
“I want to say thanks for all the things that you have done; you all have done some very good things. My problem is that we are living in Sisters. The Government spend billions of dollars on infrastructure and digging drains and things, but in Sisters, just one drain or two drain trenches have been dug. Right now, there is water running across the main access dam in Sisters East. We are asking that if the work could continue; and we want some tubing, at least for that part of the dam, so that we could be able to get access to the whole of Rotterdam,” Sam detailed.
“And secondly, I must say thanks, Minister Mustafa, for the bull that you have donated to us. We, from the Rotterdam-Bellview Coop Society, we are very grateful,” Sam added.
Another farmer, Dennis Narine of Highbury, said reptiles are feasting off his livestock. While he praised the administration by stating that 90 percent good things are being done, he added that things are lagging in the remaining 10 percent.
“I must say they do a lot of work for me, and I would like to make the maximum use out of their help. At this present, I suffer from drainage. We invest $1 million for sheep. The whole place flood out. The sheep are grazing on the dam, alligator eating them out, four of them gone. About three days ago, we asked them if they would shoot the alligators. They shoot nine alligators one night. Tonight they will go back again to shoot some more,” Narine detailed.
Requesting that the drain adjacent to the public road be cleared in order to facilitate quick drainage of the backlands, Narine explained, “…so that the sheep and the cow and everything can get raised (and) you can do a little business. That is my main concern at this time.”
Manmohan Ramnarine, another farmer, detailed that he has 67 acres of rice under cultivation at Rotterdam and he gets water from a canal which is under the control of the Guyana Sugar Corporation. That canal, he says, had been overflowing.
“The dam flood! A part of the dam bruk-up! In 2019, they used to clean all the way to the end. They did it twice, and after that they started cleaning from 33 Crossing coming back; so, at the front is dry and nice, and all the water is piling up at the back. I have water in my rice field; and the dam, I could really use a little emergency help,” he told the meeting.
In addressing the farmers’ concerns, Minister Mustapha reaffirmed Government’s commitment to advancing the agriculture sector through targeted infrastructure improvements and support for farmers. He pointed out that additional works would commence in two weeks, and the focus would be on land clearing, excavation, and the maintenance of critical drainage canals to support local food production.
“One of the first areas that the President would have visited when he became President was East Bank of Berbice. And from that time, a number of other ministers and officials would have visited East Bank of Berbice. I myself, I lost count of the number of times I would visit East Bank of Berbice; and when you look at the work that was done, it is tremendous. Lots of work you have done, but there are needs all the time…,” he explained.
“People will have needs. But, at the same time, you have to look at works that are critical, that are important. And that way, the community will benefit, rather than one person,” he explained. “And sometimes people are unreasonable…,” he added.
Minister Mustapha, noting that some land owners have been renting their farm lands and not providing needed infrastructure for the rentee, declared, “They are renting the land, collecting the rent, and they still want Government to go and do work in their land.”
Minister Mustapha has promised that, within a few weeks, drainage and irrigation works would be resumed in the community. He said the focus is on assisting small-scale farmers, particularly those cultivating five acres or less; and he pointed out that a committee would be formed to work closely with the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) to ensure that the planned works are carried out efficiently and in the best interest of that farming community.