Regional ferry service to begin operating soon – Mustapha

The regional ferry service, which will connect Guyana, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago, is expected to begin operations soon.
The new regional ferry service which is being facilitated through a joint venture between the Governments of Guyana, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago is expected to begin operations soon.

This is according to Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha.
“They are doing the trials right now in Trinidad, I am hoping that very shortly that operation can commence because the board has already been formed and we have members in that board Deodat Indar and doctor Blair are some of the members in that board and I am very optimistic it will start very short.”
Mustapha is hoping to get an expected commencement date when he attends the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) next week.
“I am going next week to COTED and hopefully I can get a date to when it will start commence.”
President Dr Irfaan Ali had already revealed that from Guyana’s end, the vessel will operate out of Parika in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara).
The Trinidad and Tobago Cabinet has approved the use of that country’s Galleons Passage vessel to operate the ferry service.
The vessel can accommodate 400 passengers and 60 cars. Among the facilities onboard are a cafeteria, a bar, and a VIP lounge.
CariCargo Incorporated, the company that will be operating the service, has been incorporated in Guyana and it comprises of Directors from Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and Guyana.
According to the Head of State, this increase in production will give the community the opportunity to tap into the Caribbean food market and support the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) objective of reducing 25 per cent of food imports by 2025.
One of the many challenges identified by Heads of Government within Caricom was actualising the regional objective stated in the 25 by 2025 initiative, which is to reduce the regional food bill by 25% by the year 2025, remains the difficulty faced in transporting agricultural goods and people intra-regionally.
Each country’s position on this issue and each Minister from the respective Caricom states took the opportunity to emphasise their commitment to the process of implementing the transportation system and to resolutely promote regional food security without compromising public health, security, and safety.
Thus, it was determined that the three countries were on the cusp of the formation of a company to drive the process for the introduction of a regional ferry service.
An inspection of the Galleons Passage in Port of Spain was conducted earlier this year by ministers and technical officials followed by discussions on the other areas of importance to the proposal for the common transportation system such as plant quarantine, including sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) matters, and immigration and customs, for the movement of people and goods for trade. A system for pre-clearance was also proposed for implementation.
A team of technical officials from Trinidad & Tobago have visited Guyana and Barbados to inspect port infrastructure to accommodate the proposed ferry service. (G2)