Minister of Agriculture, Dr Leslie Ramsammy has made it abundantly clear that no lands will be taken away from Guyanese farmers to give to the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
Last week, Minister Ramsammy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Trinidad and Tobago, which saw 10,000 acres of farmlands being allocated to that country
When contacted by iNews today, Minister Ramsammy said the MOU will see an agricultural project being developed in Guyana, with investment from Trinidad.
According to Minister Ramsammy, a specific area has not been identified as yet where the lands will be allocated, as it depends on exactly what Trinidad intends to use the lands for.
“It has to be made clear that no land will be taken from farmers, it will be new land. Guyana has much land, we’ve been inviting investors to come in,” Minister Ramsammy told iNews. According to the Agriculture Minister, this is part of the Jagdeo initiative.
Dr. Ramsammy said that Trinidad wants the land to grown food so that they would not have to import from outside the region.
He explained that over the past year, three teams have visited Guyana from Trinidad to foster cooperation in the areas of livestock, aquaculture and rice.
“Trinidad is hoping that when the project develops, the famers would be given an opportunity to own the project.”
