Mustapha unveils national drainage strategy to tackle flood issues

Guyana is currently racing to modernise its drainage and irrigation strategy as rainfall pattern shifts dramatically, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha on Thursday said as he unveiled the country’s first-ever National Drainage and Irrigation Strategy 2030.

The Strategy, which tackles climate realities, was soft-launched at the Ministry’s Regent Street Boardroom. It is made possible through funding secured by the Global Green Growth Institute, amounting to US$500,000.

Mustapha warned that past and present weather patterns pose a threat and the country can no longer afford to rely on outdated approaches in the face of a rapidly changing climate.

“The traditional approaches are no longer sufficient for us. Gone are the days when we had two or three inches of rainfall in a month, today we have five and six inches of rain in an hour. We have to prepare our drainage system,” the minister said.

The strategy is published by the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA).  The minister said that without proper planning in place, food production is compromised and citizens are deeply affected. With livelihoods at risk, these important factors led the Government to look into such a strategy.

“This strategy will help us to balance what is good and what is bad. Without effective drainage systems, communities become vulnerable to flooding and economic losses,” Mustapha said.

Mustapha noted that the project was designed to align with Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030 and enable inter-ministerial collaboration on drainage, irrigation, and flood management efforts.

He said that drainage and irrigation must be viewed as national development issues, not merely agricultural.

Georgetown has 16 operational pumps and dozens of sluices and canals as infrastructure to support drainage but it is being stretched to its limits. The outer areas have upgraded infrastructure with 93 sluices earmarked for rehabilitation which will be supported by improved pumps and canals also underway.

The NDIA is mapping the entire country’s drainage system so that plans can be made and that data will feed into a soon-to-be-launched situation room. A digital command centre that will allow authorities to identify drainage capacity across regions in real time and guide farmers on where and when to cultivate.

 

This will further support the government in advising farmers on areas of farming and improve the country’s ability to tackle flooding.

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