JAMAICA and Guyana have reached an agreement ending the feud over Jamaica's application for a waiver on Caricom's Common External Tarrif (CET) to allow for the importation of rice from the United States to meet local needs.

Minister of Industry, Investments and Commerce Karl Samuda, told Parliament yesterday that discussions between Prime Minister Bruce Golding and Guyana's President Bharrat Jagdeo has resulted in Guyana agreeing not to oppose Jamaica's application for the suspension of the CET on 9,000 tonnes of rice already on its way from the United States and due to arrive in Kingston about May 20.

"We, in turn, would give an assurance that Jamaica will guarantee the purchase of 60,000 tonnes of rice per annum, out of the 100,000 tonnes required by the country, from Guyana," he said.

Samuda said that Jagdeo also assured Jamaica would within another two weeks receive 14,000 tonnes of rice from Guyana, in addition to the nearly 3,000 tonnes already on its way to Jamaica.

"That coupled with the 9,000 tonnes on its way from the United States, which will not be subjected to the CET, will enable us to have an inventory that will safeguard us in the future against any uncertainties with respect to (rice) supplies," Samuda said.

"I can stand here today and assure Jamaica, and I can speak categorically that there will be no shortage of rice in this country," he told the House of Representatives as he opened the 2008/2009 Sectoral Debate.

Samuda said that discussions hosted by Caricom's Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED), which deals with regional trade and economic issues, in Antigua last weekend, facilitated the agreement.

He described the COTED discussions as "very serious" and "very difficult" leading up to the needed for the intervention of Golding and Jagdeo.

Explaining why the heads were needed, Samuda said, "because the matter got to the stage where we almost did something that has never been done in Caricom".

Said the minister: "Jamaica insisted that we would not yield on our right to obtain a suspension of the CET in order to ensure that rice was provided for our people at prices that they can afford."

The Jamaican Government had warned that it would override Guyanese resistance to the request for the suspension of the CET on rice imports from the United States, in order to guarantee domestic supplies.

Samuda said that Jamaican importers have lost faith in the ability of Guyana's distributors to meet the country's rice needs.

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