Georgetown, Guyana – (October 5, 2015) “I see a bright future for agriculture. I see a bright future for education and a bright future for young people in agriculture.” These were the words of President David Granger at the launch of Agriculture Month 2015.
The month long observance, which is being held under the theme “Exploiting our Strengths; advancing agriculture and social protection”, was officially launched on Sunday with an interfaith service, at the Ministry of Agriculture.
During his remarks, the President announced that he is prepared to start the process of establishing agricultural institutes and is hopeful that the first one will be completed by the end of 2017. These institutes stem from a promise made by the APNU+AFC coalition Government, prior to the 2015 general elections.
“I believe that young people, particularly children in the hinterland, must be given the type of training relevant to life in their regions, villages and communities,” President Granger said.
In addition to further developing the agriculture sector, the President said that there is need for widespread and intense training for young school leavers in the area of agriculture. “I would like to see a lot more agro processing; that is people must produce commodities, which can be processed,” President Granger added.
Meanwhile, Agriculture Minister, Noel Holder said this is a time to reflect on the present state of the sector and the economy. In keeping with the theme, the Minister pointed out the need for Guyanese to make good use of their resilience to overcome the challenges identified with social protection and agriculture.
“I ask that we expose ourselves to all the developments of the technological era by balancing it with our traditional organic values that characterise Guyanese agriculture,” Minister Holder said. Minister Holder also took the opportunity to reiterate the government’s commitment towards ensuring that food security remains a priority in keeping with the objective of the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals.
The series of activities to mark Agriculture month started on Saturday with the observance of National Tree Day.
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