Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha has condemned the steep land rental rates being charged to rice farmers, warning that the Government will act to end exploitative practices that threaten the sector’s profitability.
Addressing farmers at Mahaicony on Tuesday, the Agriculture Minister said that although the Government reduced land rental and drainage and irrigation (D&I) charges under the Mahaica-Mahaicony-Abary (MMA) scheme from $15,000 to $3500 per acre, some landowners continue to rent the same plots for up to $45,000 per acre. 
“People are paying $3,500 per acre to the MMA but then charging $35,000 and $40,000 per acre to farmers. In some areas, like Black Bush Polder, rental for a 15-acre plot reaches $700,000. That is unacceptable.”
The Minister said he is working with the Attorney General’s Chambers and the Rights Assessment Committee to enforce lease conditions that prohibit subletting and to apply a statutory formula to determine fair rental rates.
“In the lease arrangement, there’s a clause that says you cannot sublet your land, yet many are doing so at exorbitant costs,” he noted.
“We will act decisively to correct this,” he declared.
According to the Agriculture Minister, such practices undermine the Government’s substantial investment in agriculture, which has increased from $13 billion in 2020 to $104 billion by 2025 under the administration of President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali.
“We are investing billions to reduce production costs, but landlords charging $45,000 an acre defeat that purpose; the Government will not allow exploitation of farmers. We cannot allow a few to profit at the expense of those who are actually producing and developing this country. We will deal with this issue firmly.”
He urged farmers to work together and avoid bidding against one another for access to land, which further drives prices higher.
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