In keeping with its pledge to increase crop and livestock production countrywide, the Agriculture Ministry expended $1.2B for the development of several farm-to-market roads. The ministry said the ongoing construction of two major roads at Numbers 52 and 58 villages Corentyne, Berbice, as well as a $327 million asphaltic concrete road at Onverwagt in Region Five will give farmers access to approximately thousands of acres of prime farmlands for the cultivation of rice and cash crops as well as the cultivation of livestock.
Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha said the roads were among several projects streamlined for implementation at strategic farming villages across Guyana.
“These are very significant and transformative projects. You will see thousands of acres of new lands being made available with the construction of these all-weather roads which will satisfy the needs of thousands of farmers there,” the minister noted.
Additionally the ministry highlighted that the farm-to-market roadway at Number 52 Village will span approximately two kilometers long and will be completed at a cost of $240 million while the Number 58 Village road will cost just about $640 million to construct.
The ministry is also advancing its plan to expand the sector over the next four years, which would see the construction of several farm-to-market roads across the regions. This includes a projected $175 million road on the right bank of the Mahaicony Creek in Region Five, an estimated $150 million road on the left bank of the Mahaica Creek in Region Four, and an estimated $100 million road at Salem, Region Three.
