Speaking at the post-match press conference following his side's victory over arch-rivals India, Pakistan cricket team captain Sarfaraz Ahmed lauded his team's victory and expressed his desire to see international cricket return to Pakistan.
"I think this is a great achievement for me, my team and my country. Hopefully, this win, everyone will remember not [just] today or tomorrow, but for a very long time," said Sarfaraz, who was accompanied by team coach Mickey Arthur.
"When we arrived here we were ranked 8th, and now we are the champions. So, hopefully, this win will boost Pakistan cricket and all [cricket] playing nations will come to Pakistan."
Paying credit where it was due, the skipper appreciated his young teammates' efforts in the tournament: "The credit goes to my boys; they're learning very well and they work hard."
in the Champion's final.
Sarfaraz went on to acknowledge the mature response he received from his side, comprised of many fresh recruits, saying, "When superstars play it is easier to guide them during a match because they don't need much guidance; they already know how to cope with high-pressure situations. But these youngsters are remarkable and highly committed."
"Players like Fakhar Zaman, Shadab [Khan], Hasan Ali, all these players deserve to be recognised for their performances; that they were playing their first ICC tournament and nobody expected us to perform the way we did with a young team. All the credit goes to the entire team, they all worked really hard."
"A lot of people had vibes that we might not be able to defeat India, that their batting is too strong for us to handle. However, our batting and bowling were up to the task today," the captain noted.
After a reporter asked him who he dedicated the victory to, a chuckling Sarfaraz refused to answer the question, saying, "Don't ask the 'dedicate' question again, please. I don't even comment on the matter and it still causes an uproar."
The light-hearted reply was seemingly a reference to former cricketer Aamer Sohail's inflammatory comments on Friday after he was seen criticising Sarfaraz Ahmad on TV for allegedly refusing to dedicate Pakistan's win against Sri Lanka to Javed Miandad, which came on the cricketing legend's birthday.
"Players like Fakhar Zaman, Shadab [Khan], Hasan Ali, all these players deserve to be recognised for their performances; that they were playing their first ICC tournament and nobody expected us to perform the way we did with a young team. All the credit goes to the entire team, they all worked really hard."
"A lot of people had vibes that we might not be able to defeat India, that their batting is too strong for us to handle. However, our batting and bowling were up to the task today," the captain noted.
After a reporter asked him who he dedicated the victory to, a chuckling Sarfaraz refused to answer the question, saying, "Don't ask the 'dedicate' question again, please. I don't even comment on the matter and it still causes an uproar."
The light-hearted reply was seemingly a reference to former cricketer Aamer Sohail's inflammatory comments on Friday after he was seen criticising Sarfaraz Ahmad on TV for allegedly refusing to dedicate Pakistan's win against Sri Lanka to Javed Miandad, which came on the cricketing legend's birthday.
By Dwarka Lakhan
With the potential for oil to improve the fortunes of Guyana still a distant dream, it is imperative that the government not lose sight of other sectors – particularly agriculture - that have historically sustained the country’s growth.
The truth is: oil is a depletable resource which is subject to the vagaries of international pricing and demand/supply arrangements, whereas agriculture provides food security and sustains the livelihood of a significant portion of the population, especially the rural poor – in addition to providing income from exports.
The current state of the Trinidad & Tobago (T&T) economy should serve as a stark reminder of what could happen to economies like Guyana’s that place their trust on oil. Declining oil production in the wake of low world market prices has left the T&T economy in dire straits, creating a massive shortage of foreign currency necessary to buy basic goods.
The difference between Guyana and T&T is that Guyana has the greatest potential in agriculture among its Caribbean counterparts. It also has the potential to become the food bowl of the Caribbean. T&T has in the past enjoyed tremendous wealth from oil and Guyana could, too, in the future. But in a changing global economy one-trick ponies do not always survive. Consequently, Guyana should continue to develop other sectors in conjunction with its oil resources.
Putting aside Guyana’s two largest traditional agricultural industries – rice and sugar - Guyana has failed to exploit the opportunity to diversify its agricultural base, with limited success under various governments.
Mining, the other major industry, could very well hold its own, given that it is primarily funded through foreign investment. But like oil, it is also a depletable resource that is subject to international demand and pricing arrangements.
The country’s on-off focus on non-traditional agriculture for the past four decades has not benefitted from the level of commitment that oil appears to be getting. In spite of sporadic efforts, production in non-traditional crops has on average been declining.
The consequence is a rising food import bill. Not only will the failure to spur non-traditional agriculture production result in food insecurity but it will also eat up excess potential oil revenues – which incidentally are not in the near term picture.
There is therefore no doubt that it makes strategic sense to emphasize non-traditional agriculture but success will be dependent on the extent of the government’s commitment and the existence of a comprehensive plan to guide the sector’s development. All that previous governments have so far delivered are cheap commitments.
The difference between Guyana and T&T is that Guyana has the greatest potential in agriculture among its Caribbean counterparts. It also has the potential to become the food bowl of the Caribbean. T&T has in the past enjoyed tremendous wealth from oil and Guyana could, too, in the future. But in a changing global economy one-trick ponies do not always survive. Consequently, Guyana should continue to develop other sectors in conjunction with its oil resources.
Putting aside Guyana’s two largest traditional agricultural industries – rice and sugar - Guyana has failed to exploit the opportunity to diversify its agricultural base, with limited success under various governments.
Mining, the other major industry, could very well hold its own, given that it is primarily funded through foreign investment. But like oil, it is also a depletable resource that is subject to international demand and pricing arrangements.
The country’s on-off focus on non-traditional agriculture for the past four decades has not benefitted from the level of commitment that oil appears to be getting. In spite of sporadic efforts, production in non-traditional crops has on average been declining.
The consequence is a rising food import bill. Not only will the failure to spur non-traditional agriculture production result in food insecurity but it will also eat up excess potential oil revenues – which incidentally are not in the near term picture.
There is therefore no doubt that it makes strategic sense to emphasize non-traditional agriculture but success will be dependent on the extent of the government’s commitment and the existence of a comprehensive plan to guide the sector’s development. All that previous governments have so far delivered are cheap commitments.
Past experience shows that there has been weak integration of implementation efforts, resulting in sporadic ventures that have engendered limited success. In fact, over time there have been more failures than successes in a broad spectrum of agri-businesses, ranging from processing facilities to livestock development.
Although Guyana has the physical resources to ensure success in non-traditional agriculture and related agri-businesses, it would be prudent not to ignore the reasons for failure of similar ventures in the past. For instance, consistency in the supply or output of the sectors has always been problematic. Crops tend to be affected by the vagaries of weather and diseases, which have led to manufacturing downtime and consequently supply/demand shortfalls. This has had a negative impact on exports whereby contractual supply arrangements were not fulfilled; as well as resulting in inefficient domestic plant operations.
This problem has been compounded by scale of operations which has not allowed for sufficient output for exports or agro-processing. For example, in the case of agro-processing, plants have not had sufficient inputs to operate efficiently.
It is also necessary to improve co-ordination of farm-to-factory supply and establish a formal mechanism to ensure that processes put in place actually work. It is easy to argue that such mechanism, like the Guyana Marketing Corporation, already exists but whether they work effectively remains questionable.
A second problem relates to standardization of quality, especially for the export market. Third, transportation and storage of perishable crops have caused farmers substantial losses, giving rise to the need to establish adequate facilities such as storage, refrigeration and transportation to support farm to market activities.
Fourth, Guyanese have a preference for foreign goods, which ultimately limits the expansion of domestic industries. In as much as foreign imports can force local industries to be competitive, if local industries are not given some form of protection to develop as part of a feasible business strategy, then they will not prosper.
Import quotas and an appropriate tariff mechanism can be supportive of developing domestic industries. For instance, it might be appropriate to implement a workable tariff system to protect domestic industries. Evidently, the World Trade Organization rules facilitate such mechanism.
One important aspect of the government’s strategy that has not been emphasized is the potential to build around established industries – such as rice and sugar, taking into account the availability of inputs.
Evidently, backward and forward linkages between the base and satellite industries can provide a competitive advantage and offer greater control over the growth of the offshoot of the traditional industries. Such a strategy would also be beneficial because the country would be able to maximize the use of its existing skills in established industries.
On the other hand, if the principal inputs for a specific target segment are imported, then control over output and cost of production can be restrictive – based on supply and prices of raw materials.
Arguably, appropriate technology to support an agribusiness strategy can be expensive. Government involvement, through international official and non-official assistance is necessary if small or large-scale industries are to be developed. For certain industries, foreign investors should be wooed by offering them incentives to invest in the country, backed by relevant legislation.
In recent years, foreign investors have been wooed to the agricultural sector but interest has been lukewarm primarily because of high levels of political uncertainty and unfavorable business conditions. With the advent of globalization, Guyana must be able to compete for foreign capital which tends to seek countries in which risk is minimal.
Foreign businesses are also sensitive to a highly unionized environment which is prevalent in Guyana. Well-developed infrastructural, legal and regulatory environments are also preferred by foreign investors. While Guyana has made some progress in these areas, the perception is that its position remains unstable.
Venturing into non-traditional agriculture will reduce the country’s vulnerability to its traditional industries, create jobs and enhance its overall development prospects. Serious planning devoid of political rhetoric will no doubt allow the government to achieve its objectives.
Arguably, the government has made some headway in these areas but sustaining its achievements remains a challenge. There needs to be a measurable, well coordinated effort to support the diversification of the sector and to track its success.
Conversely, Guyanese are largely unskilled in the oil industry. While the terms of engagement with Exxon Mobil stipulates using Guyanese labor, it is likely that very few Guyanese will obtain skilled employment in the oil industry. However, agriculture will remain a major source of employment.
It goes without saying that the agriculture sector has the potential for viable development. Obviously, increased price pressures and global competition for the country’s traditional primary commodities – sugar, rice and bauxite – have spurred the government to look at new growth areas – a term that has been often used by the previous administration. Such tactical shift would reduce the country’s dependency on its primary products and more importantly expand its economic base – without relying on the over-hyped oil industry.
Although Guyana has the physical resources to ensure success in non-traditional agriculture and related agri-businesses, it would be prudent not to ignore the reasons for failure of similar ventures in the past. For instance, consistency in the supply or output of the sectors has always been problematic. Crops tend to be affected by the vagaries of weather and diseases, which have led to manufacturing downtime and consequently supply/demand shortfalls. This has had a negative impact on exports whereby contractual supply arrangements were not fulfilled; as well as resulting in inefficient domestic plant operations.
This problem has been compounded by scale of operations which has not allowed for sufficient output for exports or agro-processing. For example, in the case of agro-processing, plants have not had sufficient inputs to operate efficiently.
It is also necessary to improve co-ordination of farm-to-factory supply and establish a formal mechanism to ensure that processes put in place actually work. It is easy to argue that such mechanism, like the Guyana Marketing Corporation, already exists but whether they work effectively remains questionable.
A second problem relates to standardization of quality, especially for the export market. Third, transportation and storage of perishable crops have caused farmers substantial losses, giving rise to the need to establish adequate facilities such as storage, refrigeration and transportation to support farm to market activities.
Fourth, Guyanese have a preference for foreign goods, which ultimately limits the expansion of domestic industries. In as much as foreign imports can force local industries to be competitive, if local industries are not given some form of protection to develop as part of a feasible business strategy, then they will not prosper.
Import quotas and an appropriate tariff mechanism can be supportive of developing domestic industries. For instance, it might be appropriate to implement a workable tariff system to protect domestic industries. Evidently, the World Trade Organization rules facilitate such mechanism.
One important aspect of the government’s strategy that has not been emphasized is the potential to build around established industries – such as rice and sugar, taking into account the availability of inputs.
Evidently, backward and forward linkages between the base and satellite industries can provide a competitive advantage and offer greater control over the growth of the offshoot of the traditional industries. Such a strategy would also be beneficial because the country would be able to maximize the use of its existing skills in established industries.
On the other hand, if the principal inputs for a specific target segment are imported, then control over output and cost of production can be restrictive – based on supply and prices of raw materials.
Arguably, appropriate technology to support an agribusiness strategy can be expensive. Government involvement, through international official and non-official assistance is necessary if small or large-scale industries are to be developed. For certain industries, foreign investors should be wooed by offering them incentives to invest in the country, backed by relevant legislation.
In recent years, foreign investors have been wooed to the agricultural sector but interest has been lukewarm primarily because of high levels of political uncertainty and unfavorable business conditions. With the advent of globalization, Guyana must be able to compete for foreign capital which tends to seek countries in which risk is minimal.
Foreign businesses are also sensitive to a highly unionized environment which is prevalent in Guyana. Well-developed infrastructural, legal and regulatory environments are also preferred by foreign investors. While Guyana has made some progress in these areas, the perception is that its position remains unstable.
Venturing into non-traditional agriculture will reduce the country’s vulnerability to its traditional industries, create jobs and enhance its overall development prospects. Serious planning devoid of political rhetoric will no doubt allow the government to achieve its objectives.
Arguably, the government has made some headway in these areas but sustaining its achievements remains a challenge. There needs to be a measurable, well coordinated effort to support the diversification of the sector and to track its success.
Conversely, Guyanese are largely unskilled in the oil industry. While the terms of engagement with Exxon Mobil stipulates using Guyanese labor, it is likely that very few Guyanese will obtain skilled employment in the oil industry. However, agriculture will remain a major source of employment.
It goes without saying that the agriculture sector has the potential for viable development. Obviously, increased price pressures and global competition for the country’s traditional primary commodities – sugar, rice and bauxite – have spurred the government to look at new growth areas – a term that has been often used by the previous administration. Such tactical shift would reduce the country’s dependency on its primary products and more importantly expand its economic base – without relying on the over-hyped oil industry.
treat you in the community than it is to take you in and occupy a hospital bed," he added.
The budgetary allocation for the health sector has been (TT) $6 billion-plus over the past two years.
"People have to work with the healthcare system. We would do our part in providing the goods and services, but they also have a part to play in taking care of their own health so they don't present themselves to a hospital with a crisis, and that is the mantra we are using with the NCD plan," he said.
Deyalsingh also noted schools have been targeted to make them "healthy zones".
Meanwhile, doctors are now venturing out into communities to make health interventions, NCRHA chief executive officer, Davlin Thomas said last week.
There are people unaware they are ticking time bombs, he said. Many of them are suffering from diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and cancer without any treatment or change in their lifestyles.
According to the figures, in 2015-2016, the NCRHA recorded 503,000 visits to its 12 clinics. In the years 2014-2015 there were 489,759 visitors. At the St Joseph Health Centre there were 16,000 patients in 2014-2015, which jumped to 117,000 in 2015-2016. The Accident and Emergency department at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope recorded 140,000 visitors in 2010. In 2015-2016 it stood at 163,000. The number of people accessing radiology services at EWMSC was also high with 126,000 in 2013, 133,000 in 2014-2015, and 143,000 in 2015-2016. At the surgical clinics, thousands of procedures are performed annually with 42,000 in 2013-2014, 45,288 in 2014-2015, and 58,883 in 2015-2016.
These were the figures from just one of the four RHAs. The others are the North West Regional Health Authority, Eastern Regional Health Authority, South West Regional Health Authority, and the Tobago Regional Health Authority.
According to Thomas, 86 percent of deaths in the country were from NCDs, making this national strategy critical.
He said in November 2016 the NCRHA started a "Walk the Talk" initiative where doctors, nurses, dieticians and others go out to communities and attend to people. This was being done in collaboration with religious institutions as churches, mosques, and temples with attendance of between 100 to 200 people. From last December over 5,000 people were seen, and the life of a six-year-old child was saved.
Thomas said the programme started at the Curepe Presbyterian Church and attending that clinic was a mother with her young son suffering with stomach pains.
"It turned out that he had appendicitis. When we got him into the emergency department at Eric Williams immediately, it ruptured in the emergency department, so he would have died. If we doubted whether we should have continued that programme with the first one, we were convinced we were taking the right step in going into the community," said Thomas.
Thomas said the figures were overwhelming with the number of people in the communities coming out to see doctors at the churches. Among them are those unaware of being afflicted with diabetes. Some of the attendees had astronomic blood sugar readings of 200 and upwards without intervention. Only when these people got ill did they rush to health institutions, he said.
However, going into the communities and creating awareness has reaped results. Thomas noted a two percent increase in the number of people coming to the A&E department at EWMSC. Last month another programme, In Touch, was started to target "revolving door" patients – those who come in and out of the hospital frequently. Instead, a team now goes to that person's house and makes an intervention and gives guidance in making a change to a healthier lifestyle.
Thomas noted among the visitors were a high number of patients with cardiovascular diseases. Consequently, satellite clinics have been established in five areas, including Chaguanas, La Horquetta, St Joseph, and Arima to provide primary care to patients before symptoms escalate to the requirement for specialised tertiary health care.
The budgetary allocation for the health sector has been (TT) $6 billion-plus over the past two years.
"People have to work with the healthcare system. We would do our part in providing the goods and services, but they also have a part to play in taking care of their own health so they don't present themselves to a hospital with a crisis, and that is the mantra we are using with the NCD plan," he said.
Deyalsingh also noted schools have been targeted to make them "healthy zones".
Meanwhile, doctors are now venturing out into communities to make health interventions, NCRHA chief executive officer, Davlin Thomas said last week.
There are people unaware they are ticking time bombs, he said. Many of them are suffering from diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and cancer without any treatment or change in their lifestyles.
According to the figures, in 2015-2016, the NCRHA recorded 503,000 visits to its 12 clinics. In the years 2014-2015 there were 489,759 visitors. At the St Joseph Health Centre there were 16,000 patients in 2014-2015, which jumped to 117,000 in 2015-2016. The Accident and Emergency department at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex in Mt Hope recorded 140,000 visitors in 2010. In 2015-2016 it stood at 163,000. The number of people accessing radiology services at EWMSC was also high with 126,000 in 2013, 133,000 in 2014-2015, and 143,000 in 2015-2016. At the surgical clinics, thousands of procedures are performed annually with 42,000 in 2013-2014, 45,288 in 2014-2015, and 58,883 in 2015-2016.
These were the figures from just one of the four RHAs. The others are the North West Regional Health Authority, Eastern Regional Health Authority, South West Regional Health Authority, and the Tobago Regional Health Authority.
According to Thomas, 86 percent of deaths in the country were from NCDs, making this national strategy critical.
He said in November 2016 the NCRHA started a "Walk the Talk" initiative where doctors, nurses, dieticians and others go out to communities and attend to people. This was being done in collaboration with religious institutions as churches, mosques, and temples with attendance of between 100 to 200 people. From last December over 5,000 people were seen, and the life of a six-year-old child was saved.
Thomas said the programme started at the Curepe Presbyterian Church and attending that clinic was a mother with her young son suffering with stomach pains.
"It turned out that he had appendicitis. When we got him into the emergency department at Eric Williams immediately, it ruptured in the emergency department, so he would have died. If we doubted whether we should have continued that programme with the first one, we were convinced we were taking the right step in going into the community," said Thomas.
Thomas said the figures were overwhelming with the number of people in the communities coming out to see doctors at the churches. Among them are those unaware of being afflicted with diabetes. Some of the attendees had astronomic blood sugar readings of 200 and upwards without intervention. Only when these people got ill did they rush to health institutions, he said.
However, going into the communities and creating awareness has reaped results. Thomas noted a two percent increase in the number of people coming to the A&E department at EWMSC. Last month another programme, In Touch, was started to target "revolving door" patients – those who come in and out of the hospital frequently. Instead, a team now goes to that person's house and makes an intervention and gives guidance in making a change to a healthier lifestyle.
Thomas noted among the visitors were a high number of patients with cardiovascular diseases. Consequently, satellite clinics have been established in five areas, including Chaguanas, La Horquetta, St Joseph, and Arima to provide primary care to patients before symptoms escalate to the requirement for specialised tertiary health care.
