Gov’t mulls restarting Berbice River ferry to push agri production & trade

With plans to open up more lands for farming in the Berbice county, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill says the government is exploring whether it will restart the Berbice River ferry to help transport produce for trade.

Edghill said this while speaking at a luncheon on Friday that commemorated the arrival and commissioning of Guyana’s new North West District ferry, the MV Ma Lisha.

The Public Works Minister reminded those gathered at the Pegasus Hotel in Georgetown that Guyana is leading the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) food production agenda. Through this, countries committed to producing more food, increasing intra-regional trade and reducing costly extra-regional imports.

Because Guyana hopes to boost local food production, the government aims to harness more unused land for farming.

“The Berbice River is becoming a place where agriculture must be expanded.

“We already have soya bean and corn there, we are building the road from Ituni to Tacama but river transport to get supplies in and out is needed. We have to explore how to get the ferry back into the Berbice river,” Edghill said.

According to reports, the Berbice River ferry (between Ituni and New Amsterdam) was terminated in 1995 because of increasing costs and low returns. Over the years, many stakeholders have called for a return of this ferry.

Consideration for the resumption of the Berbice River ferry comes as the MV Ma Lisha is set to start sailing along the Georgetown to North West District, Region One, route. With the introduction of this larger, modern vessel, it is believed that agricultural production in Region One can be expanded.