Abary farmers fear new Hope-like canal could cripple farming

…demand govt. consultation

(Kaieteur News) – Several rice and cattle farmers in Abary, Region Five, are up in arms over ongoing excavation works on their lands, claiming they were not properly consulted before works began on a new canal.

The farmers said excavators moved onto the lands about a week ago, leaving them concerned about how the project will affect their farming operations, access to their lands and drainage.

Farmers of Abary, Region Five are concerned about the construction of a canal they believe will disrupt their livelihood.

The ongoing works appear to be part of the construction of the Hope-like canal planned for the left bank of the Abary.

The government has said the Hope-like canal programme in Region Five is intended to improve drainage and irrigation, benefit existing agricultural lands and open up new lands for farmers.

However, farmers at Abary said the current works could create more problems for those already cultivating rice and rearing cattle in the area.

A 72-year-old farmer, who said he holds a 50-year lease for the land, said he became concerned after noticing the excavators about a week ago and sought answers from the relevant authorities.

Excavators at work at the location for the Hope-like Canal.

 

He said he attempted to meet with officials of the Mahaica-Mahaicony-Abary (MMA) but was unable to get clear answers about the project.

“After this thing happened, I go into the authority and tried to see the general manager, they said he ain’t deh. They said the chairman (of the Mahaica-Mahaicony-Abary [MMA]) gon’ come. I said ‘Mr. chairman, something is going on there’, he said he knows nothing about it. I said ‘who we gon’ go to? Any problem that happen, we does go to MMA, now you know nothing?’” he said.

The farmer said he later contacted a female engineer attached to the agency and questioned whether the proposed works would allow water to pass from the backlands to the main creek, but claimed she was unable to provide an answer.

Another farmer said his main concern was access to his produce once the canal is constructed.

“All me concern is, how I gon’ reach over from there to over here with my produce, and then I have to cross another creek. How will I do that?” he asked.

He also complained that farmers were not being given an opportunity to provide input before projects were implemented.

“Even if you tell them, them does tell you what they done plan. It doesn’t make sense you tell them anything, they already planned it,” he said.

“We are being bullied and victimised. This is not right. We are here for decades. You should have come and let us know what is going on.”

Another farmer, who said he has been planting at the location for more than 15 years, feared the project could make it difficult for farmers to continue operating.

“This what they are doing here, we gon’ can’t plant. All the lands will be abandoned, because this dam, we gon’ can’t travel with we paddy. How you gon’ travel with your paddy on the dam? And then the dam gon’ block the water. We won’t get drainage,” he said.

A farmer involved in both rice cultivation and cattle rearing also questioned the location selected for the canal.

“This trench dig at the wrong place. Meet with the people and let us put it at the right place. Come with the people and let us suggest where it got to dig. It can’t dig there; it will block everybody. The cattle farmer and the rice farmer,” he said.

One farmer also criticised the government’s 2026 National Budget, pointing to its stated commitment to “putting people first.”

“We have to repeat what the 2026 big document has: “putting people first.” This is a demonstration of not even considering people’s view and their livelihood.” he said.

Some of the farmers said they have been occupying or cultivating their lands for decades and that recent developments have already caused some to slow down their operations.

Regional Chairman of Region Five, Recardo Phillips, confirmed to Kaieteur News on Sunday that the site is earmarked for the Hope-like canal.

Asked whether consultations had been held with the affected farmers, Phillips said that since he assumed office as regional chairman, comprehensive consultations had been conducted by the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA).

The canal forms part of a wider government drainage and irrigation programme in Region Five. In January, President Irfaan Ali said the Hope-like canal investment would improve drainage across approximately 186,000 acres between Mahaica and Abary, while opening up additional agricultural lands.

Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed, who visited the area on Sunday, said the works could affect hundreds of farmers who have cultivated rice and reared cattle there for decades.

“What you see happening here, this will affect hundreds of people that plant rice, that have their cattle in here for over forty, fifty years. And these lands belong to the people. It’s not state lands,” Mohamed said.

He accused the PPP/C administration of bullying farmers and linked the situation to a wider attempt to take control of privately occupied lands.

WIN Member of Parliament Natasha Singh-Lewis, who accompanied Mohamed, also questioned the positioning of the canal.

“Everybody is asking where their cattle will get water from, and when the water come up, how will you move your cattle, and where will the cattle sleep, in the water?” she said.

The farmers are calling either for the works to be halted or for further engagement with those who could be affected, with the aim of finding an alternative location that would not disrupt their farming activities.

Mohamed also urged the farmers to remain vigilant.

“That is what this government wants to do, force you off of your own land, and then they are gonna move in and take the lands away,” he said.

Source: Kaieteur News