IDB loan to improve agricultural production
Guyana Chronicle
June 25, 2004
THE Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has announced the approval of a US$22.5M concessional loan to Guyana to improve the competitiveness of agriculture through investments in infrastructure, training, research and diversification.
The programme will finance civil works to improve drainage and irrigation in selected areas, institutional development, rice seed research and production, and agricultural diversification, the bank said in a statement Wednesday.
Farmers training and extension services will be strengthened under the programme, and support will be provided for the establishment of Water User Associations, which will empower farmers to better manage secondary drainage and irrigations systems, maintain canals and control costs.
The project, to be carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture, reflects the IDB country strategy of supporting sustainable economic growth, as the agricultural sector accounts for a significant share of the country's economic output, the bank said.
The IDB loan is for a 40-year term, with a 10-year grace period, at an annual interest rate of one per cent during the grace period and two per cent thereafter.
Local counterpart funds total US$2.5M.
Since 1977 the IDB has loaned Guyana more than US$200M in loans for projects related to agriculture, supporting institutional reform and higher productivity.
In other loans earlier this year, the bank approved $88.3M in low-interest loans to Guyana to help finance improvements in surface transportation, health services and public fiscal management.