Fuel price hike is destroying rice sector

“Farmers no longer know what they are up against,” said the chairman of the Surinamese Paddy Farmers’Association (SPBA), Harrynandan Oemraw,, in response to the latest fuel price hike. Oemraw told Times of Suriname that fuel prices are being raised all the time. The SPBA had sent an invitation to acting President Ashwin Adhin and the Agriculture, Stock Breeding and Fisheries (LVV) Minister Suresh Algoe with the request to talk about the low paddy price. The government has not responded. “They have not responded to our request”, said Oemraw who added that the government is destroying the rice sector. The chairman explained that the umpteenth fuel price hike will be devastating to the rice sector which is doomed. “The chairman pointed out that farmers will sow less than what acting President Adhin said in the annual speech”, said the chairman who added that the harvest which is still going on is very bad. Most farmers had expected at least 60 bags per hectare but only got 49 bags per hectare. The chairman pointed out that all inputs are twice as expensive but that the price of paddy remains low. “If the president wants production to increase, the sector must be given a financial injection”, said Oemraw who added that the farmers can’t make investments with their income because they have other responsibilities. “They must put food on the table for themselves and their families, children must go to school and they must also pay back the banks.”