Shade houses, beekeeping training for Agatash village – President Ali announces

The village of Agatash in Region Seven is poised to benefit from more agricultural interventions, as President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali has committed to constructing two shade houses to promote production of high-value crops.

The president made the announcement during a meeting with residents on Thursday.

He charged the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Agricultural Research Institute (NAREI) with identifying viable plots of land for the establishment of these shade houses.

“I want NAREI and the Ministry of Agriculture to see whether in those shade houses we can do carrots and high value crops. So they are going to do the assessment next week,” the president said.

In addition to this, the agriculture ministry will be training ten women in beekeeping, providing them with hives, protective gear, and market access to promote honey production.

“The ministry of Agriculture will identify ten women, create a woman group that is going to get 25 hives with all the protective gears and be trained so that you could produce honey here, and we have a market that can buy the honey from you,” the president explained.

Throughout his outreach in the region, the president has been encouraging each village to explore and expand honey production, touting it as a lucrative venture.

A similar training was recently facilitated for farmers swine production and poultry rearing. Within the next two weeks, Agatash is set to begin production in these areas.

The president noted that the village has already seen tremendous investments in agriculture.

Additionally, close to $12 million expended on enhancing drainage and irrigation to date.

Residents also expressed concerns related to tourism, infrastructure and healthcare.

In response, the president committed to exploring additional avenues for development in these sectors.

Head of the Lands and Surveys, Enrique Monize, will also return to the village in the new week to address all land issues.

The Ministry of Health will also conduct a medical outreach in the area to launch its cervical cancer programme and a special dental programme for children and the elderly.

“They will have a screening for all those who need spectacles: children, the elderly, everybody. Once you need a spectacle, we are going to pay for that for you. If you need cataract surgery, we are going to take you to the hospital at Port Mourant and get that surgery completed,” the president said.

Notably, in a few days, work will also begin on a playground in the village, as per the request made by residents.

The president pointed out that the Agatash village has benefitted from a series of initiatives spanning various sectors such as education and infrastructure.

He pointed to the recent rehabilitation of the Agatash health post, which benefitted over 800 persons at a cost of $10.6 million.

Moreover, in 2023, approximately $49 million was spent on roads, enhancing connectivity and bringing an ease to travellers and residents.

In the renewable energy and electricity sector, the village has received 97 solar home systems through the government’s Solar Home Systems project, while 15.5 kilowatts of new energy capacity was also installed for enhanced generation.

This amounts to almost $6 million in solar power and energy intervention for Agatash. “These are not fairytale stories. These are the reals stories of development, of your government delivering to you. You have our full commitment that as we confront the future, we will continue to work with you on the development and advancement of all of Guyana,” the president underscored.