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As Guyana’s largest rice export market – the European Union (EU) – is clamping down on the use of pesticides on its food imports, local authorities are working to ensure that the product meets updated international standards.

This was expressed by the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) during a recent conference where it was noted that the EU is tightening legislation on safety limits of pesticide residue in rice and other imported foods.

GRDB General Manager Badrie Persaud explained that Guyana has over the years, recorded increases in the amount of rice exported to Europe.

He said for the halfway mark of this year, 52% of the country’s exported rice went to the EU. Of the entirety of last year’s rice exports, 48% went to the EU.

But with the EU now clamping down on food safety, he noted that local authorities must be concerned.

In fact, he highlighted that many European countries have stopped importing rice and other products after discovering that it does not meet their safety standards.

It was explained that the EU has been focusing on a specific pesticide used by rice farmers in Guyana called imidacloprid which is used to control one of the most prevalent pests among local rice farms, commonly called the paddy bug.

It was noted that the overuse of imidacloprid and other similar chemicals can make produce unsafe for human consumption and can also be harmful to the biodiversity of the environment.

To prevent any such instance from happening and to keep country’s major export market intact, the GRDB in collaboration with the Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) and other relevant agencies, are working to find other means of dealing with these prevalent and other types pests, and to ensure that safe, consumable rice that meets the EU’s standards.

Dr. Rajendra Persaud, a member of the GRDB’s Plant Pathology Department, who has already done studies on imidacloprid and the paddy bug, said they will be taking strategic measures to ensure to that the rice exported is safe.

“On the paddy bug and its management in Guyana, with our overall objective to study the paddy bug and to develop strategies that effectively reduces its economic impact on rice cultivation, we start off that by implementing our national monitoring and surveillance strategy which is currently being conducted throughout the rice growing regions with the help of our extension arm, working along with the farmers, we are evaluating new insecticides. We are also looking at the option of some bio pesticides,” he said.

As part of these strategic measure, the GRDB has already start the construction of a Bio Control Lab and will also be conducting further studies.

It was reported in 2019 that the GRDB received assistance from its international partner, the Latin-American Fund for Irrigated Rice (FLAR), to tackle the infestation of paddy bugs which has been affecting farmers in all the rice-producing regions.

Farmers, however, were not accepting the suggestions being put forward by the team of experts which comprised of entomologist and researcher, Dr Ed Pulver along with agricultural engineer Santiago Jaramillo Cardona.

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Former National Security Minister Hermangild Francis has spoken regarding politics in the Royal Saint Lucia Police Force (RSLPF).

“The advice I would give the police officers presently is to take the politics out of the police force. They are too political. There are police officers there that when you listen to them speaking, they are even more au courant with the politics than the politicians,” Francis declared.

He spoke during an appearance on Wednesday’s edition of Good Morning Saint Lucia on Hot 7 Television.

The former Deputy Police Commissioner told programme Host Shannon Lebourne that some of the senior officers influence some youngsters.

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“When I was a police officer of course, I knew where I was voting. Of course, I knew where I was voting. I voted, but when it came to my job I was brutal. Whether you were UWP or Labour I would do what I had to do,” Francis stated.

He described it as ‘ a lot of hogwash’ claims that politicians are interfering with the RSLPF.

Francis said if an officer allows that to happen, that individual should not be in the force.

“If the Commissioner allows a Minister to call him and tell him to withdraw a charge against a particular person and he does it, then he does not deserve to be Commissioner of Police,” Francis asserted.

“You cannot interfere with the police force. It has to be a hands-off situation,” the former Minister noted.

Francis said people associate some officers with the United Workers Party (UWP).

“I can give you one example. People talk about the Deputy Commissioner and they said that he is a United Workers Party person and when you look at everything else that has happened, that is not so. They guy did his job,” he explained.

“He was the one who was sent to Bordelais and when he was sent to Bordelais at a higher rank, it was not the United Workers Party that sent him there. It was the Saint Lucia Labour Party that sent him there and then he came back to the police force at a higher rank, applied, went through the process of the Public Service Commission – he was the best at the interviews and became the Deputy Commissioner. But because he stopped a politician and another person who is associated with a party, he becomes political and that is the mistake we make,” the former Minister said

“Allow police officers to do their work. They will do what they are supposed to do,” Francis observed.

Headline photo: Hermangild Francis (Stock image)

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Pruebas de cernimiento, educación y vacunación contra el virus SARS-Cov-2, son algunos de los esfuerzos que centrará el Departamento de Salud (DS) durante este fin de semana del viernes, 15 de julio al domingo, 17 de julio, enfocados en mantener una población protegida y mermar riesgos de hospitalización y gravedad a consecuencia del virus. 

“Estamos en pandemia y esto no ha acabado. Nuestro personal sigue identificando espacios para desarrollar acciones de prevención ante un virus que sigue en comunidad y brindarle a nuestra población los recursos y herramientas para evitar contagios y la propagación. Igualmente, los esfuerzos de educación son sumamente importantes para que la ciudadanía tome decisiones informadas basadas en datos clínicos y científicos. Estamos en todos lados con un mismo fin, protegerlos”, indicó Carlos Mellado López en comunicación escrita.  

Precisamente, bajo ese escenario, de cara al inicio de clases, enfermeros, inmunizadores y educadores del Programa de Vacunación estarán en San Patricio Plaza en Guaynabo de 12 del mediodía a 7 de la noche este viernes y sábado para acceder a la vacuna a toda persona mayor de cinco años. Ubicados en el antiguo local de la tienda Kress, el personal administra primera, segunda y dosis de refuerzo. 

Mellado López agregó, “queremos asegurar comunidades escolares altamente seguras, por eso el llamado a padres a vacunar a sus hijos y aquellos que no cuentan con su dosis de refuerzo ya sea el primer o segundo, hágalo, la vacuna nos brinda salud y ha quedado evidenciado”.

Mientras que el equipo de Epidemiología asistirá a las celebraciones de las fiestas patronales de varios municipios. Hoy jueves, estarán en Cidra; viernes en Arroyo; sábado en Morovis y el domingo en Hatillo y Rio Grande de 3:00 p.m. a 7:00 p.m.  

El Secretario explicó que están dirigidos a la realización de pruebas para la detección del COVID-19, sino que también brindarán material educativo sobre VIH y Enfermedades Transmisibles, Viruela del Mono, COVID-19 y vacunación.

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Digicel Group Holdings Limited (Digicel) has announced the completion of the sale of Digicel Pacific Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary, to a subsidiary of the Australian telecommunications company Telstra Corporation Limited, with funding from the Australian Government, through Export Finance Australia.

The transaction values Digicel Pacific at up to US$ 1.85 billion, inclusive of a three-year, US$ 250 million earn-out, equating to approximately 8.3 times DPL’s adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of approximately US$222 million in the year ended March 31, 2021.

A payment of US$ 1.6 billion, before deduction for customary working capital and other adjustments, is payable to DGHL upon closing of the transaction and Digicel expects to achieve the maximum earn-out payment of US$ 50 million in respect of the first earn-out period which is based on service revenue performance for the year ended March 31, 2022.

Digicel has also reported that the Independent State of Papua New Guinea has agreed to enter into a binding international arbitration process to resolve the disputed one-time PGK 350 million (approximately US$ 99.4 million) exit tax and to waive a further PGK 50 million (approximately US$ 14.2 million) sought in respect of non-payment of the tax to date.

As part of this process US$ 99.4 million has been placed in escrow on closing pending the outcome of the arbitration which will take place in Singapore.

Digicel Pacific operates in six markets in the South Pacific including Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, Tonga and Nauru.

There will be no change to the Digicel brand in the six markets and the current management team will remain with and continue to lead the business delivering best-in-class telecommunications services to Digicel Pacific’s valued customers throughout the region.

Commenting, Denis O’Brien, Digicel Founder and Chairman said: “Having established our Pacific operations as a business start-up in 2005, we depart with enormous pride in a team that has made affordable best-in-class communications available to more than 10 million people across six of the most exciting economies in the region. I am deeply grateful to all our colleagues who contributed to this success and in particular, to our 1,700 staff in the Pacific who I know will continue to represent the Digicel brand with pride under new owners Telstra. We wish them every continued success for the future”.

Meanwhile, Oliver Coughlan, Group Chief Executive, said: “Until 2020 I was privileged to serve as CEO of our Digicel Pacific operations over many years and to work with exceptional people at this highly performing, high growth business. They retain our appreciation and friendship. Post this transaction, Digicel is well positioned to support continuing growth in our well-invested networks in our 25 markets in the Caribbean and Central America”.

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