The Ministry of Agriculture will soon bring together hotel owners and local farmers to establish direct supply chains for fresh produce.
This would create new market opportunities for farmers while reducing Guyana’s reliance on imported vegetables.
Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha made the announcement on Wednesday during the opening of the Agriculture Innovation and Entrepreneurship Programme (AIEP) Tunnel-Ventilated Pen Project.
The minister said the initiative will link farmers, particularly young entrepreneurs participating in government-supported agricultural programmes, with hotels and businesses in the rapidly expanding hospitality industry.
“We will be inviting all the owners of hotels to come into our ministry to talk to them and link them to farmers, link them to groups where they can have their produce directly from the farmers supplying to the hotels and the hospitality industry,” the minister said.
Minister Mustapha explained that the move builds on the success of AIEP through which hundreds of young people are now producing high-value crops using shade houses and hydroponic systems.
He recalled that in 2021, Guyana imported approximately $2.6 billion worth of high-value vegetables, including broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, lettuce and sweet peppers, primarily for the hospitality industry.
“Today, we are producing more of those products locally. Young people in our country are producing these crops and supplying the hospitality industry,” the minister expressed.
He said the government’s investments in modern agriculture are creating sustainable business opportunities for young people while improving national food security.
“When we launched the AIEP in 2021, our goal was clear—to move agriculture from sustenance to sustainability and from traditional practices to technology-driven enterprise. We started with high-value crops in shade houses and hydroponics, and now with poultry in tunnel-ventilated pens,” the minister said.
Meanwhile, Minister within the Ministry of Agriculture, Vikash Ramkissoon, described the project as a historic milestone for the sector.
Minister Ramkissoon notedvthat it demonstrates how young people are embracing agriculture in innovative ways.
He said the initiative is another example of President Ali’s vision of creating opportunities for youth while modernising Guyana’s agriculture sector.
“What we are witnessing here today is a very important and historic step in the agriculture sector. Young people have organised themselves to do agriculture and livestock rearing in the most modernised and innovative environment, which is the brainchild of your president,” Minister Ramkissoon said.