Govt pushes AI-driven farming as Region Six eyes next growth phase

Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha, officially launched the 20th Berbice Expo and Trade Fair on Friday.

This year, the expo is going to be held under the theme, ‘Harnessing AI to Transform the Future: While Enhancing Our People.’

The Expo, hosted by the Central Corentyne Chamber of Commerce (CCCC), will be held in October at the Rose Hall Estate Canje Ground from October 2nd to the 5th in Region Six.

This year’s theme focusing on artificial intelligence, was chosen deliberately with Minister Mustapa noting that it is already reshaping how businesses operate, how farmers access information and how governments deliver services.

“The question is no longer whether AI will become part of our future. It already is,” Minister Mustapha said, adding, “The real question is whether we will use it wisely, whether we will adopt it early enough, and whether we will ensure that our people are prepared to benefit from it.”

That shift is already taking shape in the agricultural sector, where technology is being used to improve productivity and access information.

For example,the ministry’s Farmers Connect app now has 4,389 subscribers, including 2,212 active farmers, and provides agricultural updates, services and AI-assisted plant disease identification via smartphone photo.

“I want to encourage more farmers to utilise the platform…and take advantage of the opportunity that digital technology provides,” he encouraged.

He said, “We are also strengthening the agriculture information system, which is improving our ability to collect, manage and utilise information on farmers, farms and agricultural activity.”

The ministry is also pursuing partnerships with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) to advance AI-driven production, hydroponics, climate-resilient crops and livestock management, and will soon launch a “situation room” with real-time monitoring in collaboration with IICA.

According to the minister, “That project will help us to have real-time information and that will not only be centred on Guyana but the CARICOM. In one-month time, we will be launching that at the Ministry of Agriculture.”

Meanwhile, Minisrer Mustapha linked the Expo to wider government investment in Region Six, including the Berbice Deep Water Port, a proposed four-lane Berbice River Bridge, road expansion, a planned international-standard stadium and a proposed municipal airport.

Minister Mustapha invited farmers, processors, manufacturers, investors, financial institutions and young entrepreneurs to use October’s Expo not just to display products but to form partnerships and explore investment opportunities.

“The Berbice of tomorrow must be more productive than the Berbice of today,” he said. “It must be more technologically advanced, more connected to markets, and it must create more opportunities for our people.”

He was joined by Regional Chairman, Junior Bassant, President of the CCCC, Adrian Anamayah, and other officials at the launch. (DPI)