The Government of Guyana, within the last six months, has rehired 1000 sugar workers, who were retrenched by the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) administration’s restructuring of the sugar sector.
Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha told the House this morning during the budget debates, that some 7000 workers were pushed into poverty by the restructuring. He added that poverty in some areas of the sugar belt increased by a whopping 60% in five years following the closure of several sugar estates by the David Granger administration.
In terms of infrastructure, the minister revealed that cane transport route and the factories are in bad shape, with more than 60% of the all-weather roads in the corporation early impassable. Remedial works, he said, will commence shortly.
He added that more than 50% of the cane transport fleet, especially the punts were left to deteriorate to the point of disuse.
