UNDP’s 2022-2026 Guyana Programme Cycle: Climate-smart agriculture, early warning systems for flooding being discussed

…as Agri Minister, UNDP Resident Rep discuss possible areas for collaboration

With December 2021 marking the end of the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP’s) current five-year programming cycle, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha on Tuesday met virtually with UNDP Resident Representative Jairo Valverde to discuss areas of interest for Guyana, particularly for the agriculture sector.

The UNDP is currently developing its 2022-2026 Country Programme for Guyana, and has since engaged the Government for its input based on what was outlined and prioritised in its developmental agenda, in which agriculture plays a major role.
During the meeting, Valverde noted that, as is customary, the new country programme would be aligned with the Government’s policies and priorities as were articulated in the Government’s manifesto and 2020 and 2021 budget presentations.
“We hope that, as we look at our next five years, we can build on the history that we have in Guyana. We can also look at training farmers on entrepreneurship; for example, financial management planning. We can also continue the work with micro-grants to village councils or disaster-prone areas, as we’ve done in Regions Five, Six, and Nine,” he added.
Further, he stated that these works have been done to strengthen community resilience to natural hazards.
“We think that over the next five years, at the discretion of the Government, we could look into things that would be increasing the work of climate-smart agricultural practices: advancing community-based early warning systems, particularly with floods; issues related to the management of chemicals and waste; and the blue economy.”
Guyana, he stated, would be “a beneficiary of our regional project that aids the development which aims to protect, restore, and harness the natural coastal and marine capital, to catalyse investments in climate resilience, sustainable and post-COVID economy.
For his part, Minister Mustapha said it is evident that the UNDP’s proposed Country Programme is in line with what the Government has been doing since it took office.
“As a Government, it is very important for us to move the agriculture sector forward, and we will look to our partners for assistance to further advance what we’ve started. For instance, you mentioned climate-smart agriculture. Last year, in the 2020 Emergency Budget, the Government had set aside $18.5 million to procure shade house materials to promote smart agriculture, but we’ll need help to push it and extend it to more farmers and farming groups.
“By the end of the year, we’ll see approximately 100 shade houses being constructed under that programme. In addition to smart agriculture, the Ministry will also be introducing a programme that involves promoting the cultivation of high-value crops like carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower among the younger population.”
Furthermore, the subject Minister noted that the Ministry, through the Pesticides and Toxic Chemicals Control Board (PTCCB), has also been engaging farmers about the harmful effects of chemicals in farming. Over the years, Guyana has been able to ensure that 70 percent of the chemicals used in its agriculture sector are classified as moderate, rather than hazardous or extremely hazardous. Minister Mustapha has said the Ministry has also been promoting integrated pest management (IPM), and organic farming through the use of organic manure and natural pesticides.
While addressing Guyana’s vulnerability to flooding, Minister Mustapha said it was critical for Guyana to improve its early warning capacities. Noting that Guyana is still recovering from what is considered the most devastating flood ever experienced in recent history, Minister Mustapha said that effective early warning systems would help policymakers and citizens to prepare for flooding.
“We are now in the process of distributing flood relief grants for the flood that we experienced earlier this year. That flood devastated Guyana’s entire agriculture sector. The early warning system will play a very critical role in ensuring things are put in place to prepare for varying weather conditions. Although the Government has invested in improving the infrastructure to combat flooding and other weather-related occurrences, Guyana’s geographical position still puts us in a very vulnerable position. We are below sea level, and depend on low tides before we can drain our lands on the coast. With 90% of the population living on the coast, it is very difficult to avoid flooding, but with an effective early warning system, we can be prepared to an extent,” the Agriculture Minister added.