Large tracts of the Intermediate savannahs are being opened for new agriculture investments

(photo courtesy: www. guyanachronicle.com)

CARDI will soon begin developing just over 2,000 hectares of land in the Intermediate Savannahs of Region 10, Guyana. The land which has been granted by the Government of Guyana to CARDI will be used to produce forages, rice, corn and other crops, for processing into animal feed. The feed produced from this venture will cater to the needs of local farmers in the first instance and later exported to meet the needs of livestock farmers across the CARICOM.

Fuelled by increasing incomes and growing requests for healthier animal protein alternatives, farmers across the Region have been unable to satisfy the demand for small ruminant meat. Inadequate quantity and quality of forages especially during the dry season, has been identified as a major constraint to ruminant productivity.

This activity is consistent with the differentiated strategy CARDI is adopting to guide regional agriculture development across the Region. Guyana belongs to Group 1 countries where mega projects will be undertaken, with the aim of contributing to the regional demand for fresh and processed agricultural produce. This initiative is also closely aligned to Guyana’s plan of opening the Intermediate Savannahs to new investments in agriculture and agro processing. Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder has in the past referred to The Intermediate Savannahs as Guyana’s new agricultural frontier.