Pres. Ali applauds local farmers as study finds Guyana is only country to produce all the food it needs

President Irfaan Ali on Saturday applauded the country’s farmers in response to a recent study, published in Nature Food – which found that out of 186 countries, only Guyana produces enough food to self-sufficiently feed all its citizens without foreign imports.

“We must applaud our farmers and this government that made the investment to make this possible,” the President said during a meeting in Lima Sands, Essequibo Coast.

The research which was reported on the BBC investigated how well each country could feed their populations in seven food groups: fruits, vegetables, dairy, fish, meat, plant-based protein and starchy staples.

According to the study, China and Vietnam were close behind Guyana in boasting self sufficiency.

The president said his administration will do everything to ensure farmers, particularly rice farmers, gain more profits from their produce.

To this end, he spoke about investing in an expansive storage facility in Region Two and provide additional transportation to assist farmers in transporting their produce from their farms.

He also touched on agriculture diversification for Region Two in growing high value crops, get more involved in climate resilient and sustainable agriculture.

To get more citizens in farming and agriculture, President Ali said tens of thousands of land will also be opened up in Region Two.

“So the next generation can be part of the ownership of land, can do farming,” President Ali said.

According to the Head of State, the government is also building infrastructure to support food and agriculture in the region.

“We want to make the initiative of cage farming expansive in the region, so it can be the capital of cage farming.”

He said 50 marine cages will be made available for communities in the region.

“Agriculture expansion and confidence in this region is growing,” the President said.