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SURINAME is a small Latin American country bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana, with an area of 163,000 km2. It consists of swampy coastal plains where rice, sugarcane, and other crops are grown, and tropical forest on inland hills. The population in 1999 was 415,000. There is little arable land; bauxite mining dominates the economy. However, agriculture accounted for 13% of the GDP in 1998; it occupied 21% of the workforce in 1996.
General information
- GNI per capita PPP$, 2000: 3,480
- Internal renewable water resources: 200 km3
- Main food consumed: rice, wheat, sugar and
honey, oil and fat, meat
- Rice consumption, 1999: 77.9 kg year per
person
Production constraints
There are several constraints to sustainable rice production in Suriname:
- Unfavorable government policy, especially on input supply, milling, price control, and taxation of exports
- Blast
- Weed and red rice competition
- Degradation of irrigation infrastructure
- Yield potential of current varieties has reached a plateau
Production season |
|
|
|
Planting |
Harvesting |
Main season |
Jan-Feb |
Apr-May |
Basic statistics, Suriname |
|
1985 |
1990 |
1995 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
Rice |
Area harvested (ha) |
74,890 |
52,005 |
60,000 |
54,000 |
50,000 |
50,000 |
Yield (t/ha) |
4.0 |
3.8 |
4.0 |
3.5 |
3.6 |
3.5 |
Production (t) |
299,185 |
196,010 |
242,000 |
188,400 |
180,300 |
175,000 |
Rice imports (t) |
0 |
0 |
0 |
80 |
110 |
na |
Rice exports (t) |
137,735 |
66,650 |
79,329 |
84,100 |
71,300 |
na |
Others |
Population, total ( x10 3 ) |
384 |
402 |
409 |
414 |
415 |
na |
Population, agriculture ( x 10 3 ) |
86 |
85 |
82 |
80 |
80 |
na |
Agricultural area ( x 10 3 ha) |
81 |
88 |
89 |
88 |
na |
na |
Irrigated agricultural area ( x 10 3 ha) |
45 |
47 |
49 |
49 |
na |
na |
Total fertilizer consumption (t) |
11,658 |
1,000 |
4,300 |
5,500 |
na |
na |
Tractors used in agric. (no.) |
1,202 |
1,290 |
1,330 |
1,330 |
na |
na |
Source: FAOSTAT online database. |
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