President Dr. Irfaan Ali issued a stern, public warning to the management of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) that shortcomings in sugar production next year will not be overlooked.
The corporation, which employs thousands of people needed for sugar production, performed poorly this year. Though acknowledging that the sugar sector was beset by many challenges, the President said he expressed his government’s great dissatisfaction in an engagement with GuySuCo’s management.
He declared, “I’ve read the riot act to the management of GuySuCo.”
Beyond expressing that dissatisfaction clearly, the President said the management team was tasked with ensuring that targets for next year are achieved particularly since investments sought were supported by the government.
“We have supported that investment plan so I made it very clear that if the target for 2025, the first and second crop… if those targets are not achieved heads will roll,” President Ali said in an interview.
The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), in October, ntoed that GuySuCO only 24,711 tonnes of sugar, representing just 39 per cent of its 63,276-tonne target for the year. It was also noted that it would be difficult to lessen that deficit in the remaining cropping period this year.
The union, however, acknowledged that some challenges were faced.
But what are the challenges?
According to the President, the fields and factories across the coast were mismanaged and left dilapidated by the former government. So he explained that fields had to be restored, and much-needed maintenance and investments were needed at the factories.
Previously, the President said a major drought also impacted sugar production.
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