Region Six is set for major agricultural expansion as Guyana partners with the Dominican Republic to launch cocoa and coffee production, while private cane farmers have resumed large-scale sugar cultivation in Skeldon, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said on Friday.
Speaking at the World Food Day ceremony at the Albion Sports Complex, Mustapha said the partnership with the Dominican Republic aims to diversify production and boost value-added processing in the Upper Corentyne area.
“Only yesterday we heard the Vice President speak about the Agro Park in Region Six and the development of thousands of acres of land to come under cultivation,” Mustapha said. “We are now working with the Dominican Republic who have already visited the Upper Corentyne to start the production of cocoa and coffee. They want to set up a cocoa and coffee plant,” he added.
Mustapha also reported significant progress in revitalising the traditional sugar industry, with private cane farmers restarting planting operations in Skeldon after years of inactivity following the estate’s closure.
“We have started recultivation of sugar cane on the Corentyne in Skeldon,” the minister said. He continued: “We are working once again with private cane farmers to develop another 10,000 acres of land that they had been planting before the closure of the Skeldon Sugar Estate. They are now cultivating once again 5,000 hectares of sugar cane.”
He added that the Ministry of Agriculture is in discussions with a private developer to establish a small-scale sugar processing plant in the area to support local production and create jobs.
Mustapha said the initiatives align with the government’s broader agenda to strengthen food security, expand exports, and promote sustainable growth in Guyana’s agriculture sector.
