Berbicians’ livelihoods will be significantly disrupted if the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuco) downsizes its operations.
This is according to the General Secretary of the ruling People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Dr Bharrat Jagdeo.
Dr Jagdeo’s statements come in response to the Opposition Leader, Aubrey Norton, announcing his party’s intention not to support the expansion of the sugar industry if they are elected to government.
Importantly, what is not being considered is that sugar production is the primary source of job opportunities and income for families. Dr Jagdeo emphasised that removing disposable income from people would affect the entire region, as the source of income from sugar employment is essential for the local economy.
“The source of the disposable income is the source for other people, who are selling other types of services,” the general secretary said at a press conference held at Freedom House on Thursday.
Jagdeo criticised the previous APNU/AFC government for denying that they would shut down estates during their campaign trail, which they eventually did, leaving over 7000 workers without a source of income.
Their actions, he noted led to the total collapse of the Berbice economy from 2015 to 2020.
The current PPP/C Administration has invested billions to revive the industry and provide disposable income to families.
The industry not only provides employment opportunities, but also supports the drainage and irrigation network for households in the area.
Dr Jagdeo highlighted that without functioning sugar estates, villages could experience flooding and property damage due to the intricate drainage system that is connected to the estates.
“If…there was no functioning sugar estate, you would have to spend maybe 30 per cent more on DNI…in those areas, it’s a complex system that operates…I don’t expect Norton and the others to understand that,” he further expounded.
The previous government closed several estates from 2015 to 2020, including the Wales, Enmore, Rose Hall and Skeldon Estates.
As part of its 2020-2025 manifesto, the current administration has reopened and revitalised the Rose Hall Estate and rehired hundreds of workers, with efforts underway to reopen the Skeldon Estate.
Additionally, the Enmore Estate is being transformed into a sugar refinery to generate additional income, and the Wales Estate has been converted into the Wales Development Authority.
GuySuco is also making significant strides in modernisation and mechanisation through the government’s investments. [DPI]
I do not understand why Black Governments are averse to sugar as they did in T&T with disastrous consequences. The economic and social consequences anticipated in Guyana from Norton;s madness with sugar have actually taken place in Trinidad. The PNM even closed down the oil refinery at PAP in 2017 and sugar in 2003 without any feasibility studies being conducted and T&T’s economy is decelerating fast and furious with huge budget deficits. The sugar industry is germane to the lives and livelihoods fence line communities in many aspects as so accurately pointed out by VP Jagdeo. Since the closure of Caroni Ltd in 2003 flooding has been very widespread in the former sugar growing areas of Central and South Trinidad. Mr Ganga Singh must have told this to the Guyana Government. Sugar cultivation is not only about sugar. It has a range of other products such as molasses, rum, fufural, ethanol ( clean energy) in a Guyana with huge land space for sugar cultivation. Sugar can be totally mechanised to reduce production costs but it takes time to re-engineer. The closure of sugar by Norton is directed at harming rural Guyana and its ability to diversify into agriculture to counteract the Dutch disease from the expanding oil industry. Guyana can financially afford to mechanise and modernise sugar now to Guyana’s wide economic dependence. Norton must tell Guyanese why he plans to close down sugar and whether it is politically motivated as in T&T for spite and vindictiveness and leave thousands of arable lands non-productive. What is his alternative crop to use these lands.