Doing business in Nickerie
Nickerie in the far west is Suriname's rice bowl: more than 95% of the country's paddy is grown here. The capital is Nieuw Nickerie, at the mouth of the Nickerie River. The district borders Guyana; the ferry across the Corantijn (Corentyne) River is the official road link with that country.
On this page (8)
- Economy: Rice, bananas, mango, border trade with Guyana.
- Local licences: the district commissioner (food and drink, events, street stalls, Nuisance Act).
- National: KKF registration, FIN tax number and taxes; the rules are the same everywhere in Suriname.
- Figures: census 2012 (ABS), the latest official count.
Economy and employers
Rice dominates. In 2024 Suriname harvested 290,665 tonnes of wet paddy, almost all of it in Nickerie, and exported 45,404 tonnes of rice worth about USD 27 million; Jamaica is the largest buyer. According to a sector study by the national development bank NOB (May 2025), 4,000 to 6,000 people work directly and indirectly in the rice chain. In the autumn 2024 crop, 1,161 small farmers planted 10,356 ha between them. Banana company FAI has 175 ha of bananas in Nickerie, besides its plantation at Jarikaba (Saramacca). Since 2023 part of the district has been recognised by the Ministry of Agriculture (LVV) as free of the carambola fruit fly and the mango seed weevil, which lets mangoes go to Europe again. The ADRON rice research centre is also in Nickerie. Between 2004 and 2012 the population fell by 6.6%.
Access and infrastructure
The East-West Link runs from Nieuw Nickerie to Paramaribo and on to Albina. From Nieuw Nickerie it is 32 km to South Drain, where the ferry Canawaima has sailed to Moleson Creek in Guyana since 1998. In August 2026 the service stopped for about a week over safety and technical issues: allow time. A bridge across the Corantijn has been discussed for years. In 2026 the government wants to finance it alone, but at the end of September 2026 Suriname and Guyana still had no new agreement; the old MoU expired in November 2025. Havenbeheer Suriname manages the port of Nieuw Nickerie. Major Henk Fernandes airport has a 700 m runway for small aircraft.
Opportunities for business
- Machinery, maintenance and spare parts for rice farms; drying and storing paddy.
- Adding value to rice: packing under your own brand, processing broken rice and bran into flour or feed.
- Mangoes and other fruit for export from the fruit-fly-free area, with LVV registration and a traceability code.
- Advice, joint purchasing and credit brokering for the many small rice farmers (8.9 ha on average).
- Transport, storage and services for cross-border traffic with Guyana.
These are possibilities that fit the district economy, not a promise of customers. Test an idea first with conversations and numbers. Writing a business plan
Practical: where to arrange what
Tax office Nickerie: Landingstraat 1, Nieuw Nickerie. Customs: Nieuw Nickerie customs post. Local licences (food and drink, events, street stalls, Nuisance Act): district commissioner's office Nickerie. Trade register registration goes through the KKF in Paramaribo; ask the KKF whether you can also hand in documents in the district. For fruit exports: register as a producer with LVV.
The district commissioner's forms, fees and processing times are not published centrally. Check them with the office before you rent or invest. How district government works: Business by district.
Ressorts
Nickerie is divided into 5 ressorts:
- Groot Henar
- Nieuw Nickerie
- Oostelijke Polders
- Wageningen
- Westelijke Polders
Guides that help next
- Start a business
- Business licences
- Buying land and property
- Business financing
- Hiring staff
- Tenders
- Starting an agribusiness
- Exporting from Suriname
- EU rules for Surinamese suppliers
- Trade agreements and market access
Other districts
- Paramaribo
- Wanica
- Coronie
- Saramacca
- Commewijne
- Marowijne
- Para
- Brokopondo
- Sipaliwini
- Compare all districts
Sources
- ABS: Definitieve resultaten Census 8, bevolking en oppervlakte per district
- ABS: Census 8 districtsresultaten Nickerie, Coronie, Saramacca, Commewijne en Para (2014)
- NOB: Sectorstudie Platform Rijstsector (May 2025)
- FreshPlaza: Surinaamse bananenexport, FAI in Jarikaba en Nickerie (13 October 2025)
- Keynews: Suriname herstart export manja naar Europa (18 May 2023)
- Kaieteur News: Canawaima-veerdienst (September 2026)
- De West: Suriname bereid Corantijnbrug te financieren (30 September 2026)
- Oost-Westverbinding: route, bruggen en veerdiensten (Wikipedia)
Population and area: ABS (General Bureau of Statistics), Eighth Census 2012 (final results). The ninth census has been carried out, but ABS has not published results yet; the current population is likely different.
Checked on 26 October 2026. General information, not legal advice.