One-day medical outreach held in St. Cuthbert’s
Georgetown, GINA, March 13, 2005
The people of St. Cuthbert’s Mission, Mahaica Creek, Region 4 benefited from a Government-sponsored medical outreach programme on Saturday ( March 12, 2005). The Government has recognised the need for the indigenous peoples to have access to medical care. The community will continue to benefit from further medical outreach programmes organised by the Ministry of Health.
The team was headed by the coordinator of indigenous communities’ attached to the Ministry of Health Mrs. Patricia Singh and the Coordinator of Regional health services Mr. Harrychan Ramu. The team consisted of one Doctor, three overseas based nurses, a Medex, a dental team of four persons and three volunteers.
More than one hundred residents of St. Cuthbert’s mission benefited from a one-day medical outreach programme. Mrs. Singh said that although the community has a health centre there are no doctors or dentists that could offer the services the medical team provided. She added that the objective of the outreach programme was to reach areas where health service providers are not easily accessed.
The services of the dental team were in great demand. A resident expressed her happiness since, to travel to Georgetown to have extractions and medical attention is costly.
The Medex, Mr. Jeffrey carried out vision testing and identified thirty persons who will be recommended to benefit from a special Government eye care programme where spectacles for persons age fifty five and older will be provided free of cost.
Dr. Kampta Prashad said that the activities were successful since many of the people were in great need of the services. He said that the majority of the conditions were general which included hypertension, diabetes, respiratory tract infections and skin infections in the children.
Mrs. Singh said that the next community to benefit from such a visit will be Santa Mission in the Demerara River. She added that such programmes are part of the mandate of the Ministry of Health and would be an ongoing exercise.
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Sophia and other residents will benefit from the Unserved Areas Electrification Programme
Georgetown , GINA, March 13, 2005
Some 6000 households in the Sophia Housing Scheme, Cummings Lodge and Cummings Park are to benefit from the Unserved Areas Electrification Programme (U.A.E.P).
Today Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, Coordinator of the Sophia Development Programme Philomena Sahoye Shury and representatives of Guyana Power and Light (GPL) visited Sophia where a meeting was held with community representatives of the different areas that will be benefiting from this programme.
Prime Minister Hinds said these areas are identified for electricity supply under the UAEP which is a four year programme funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
He said the conditions attached to this programme are that persons will have to pay $10,000 or installments of minimum $2000 until payments are made in full.
According to Prime Minister Hinds work will only begin when at least 50 percent of the residents for each area complete making their full $10,000 payment before May 20, 2005 which is the designated application period.
Prime Minister Hinds said house owners or tenants must have a letters to satisfy GPL’s requirements.He said the Ministry of Housing will be supplying GPL a list of all the persons that are eligible and an allocation letter of where they live.
According to Prime Ministry Samuel Hinds it is important for residents to ensure their houses are wired in accordance with the GPL’s requirements.
Prime Minister Hinds said more generators will be installed which will be able to facilitate the areas under focus.
Chief Operations Officer of GPL Bharat Dindyal said GPL’s facility will be able to adequately supply the areas with electricity.
According to Prime Minister Hinds domestic bills are highly subsidised which is part of tariff A which is the normal domestic use while those that are commercial are under tariff B which will be commercial charges.
He said 15,000 households will be supplied with electricity before the end of the year.
On March 19, 2005 representatives from GPL will be collecting payments and installments from residents at the Sophia Health Centre and from tomorrow GPL will be receiving payments at Main and Middle Streets offices.
The Government is focusing on the creation of economic growth and as a result Government of Guyana/Inter-American Development Bank Unserved Areas Electrification Programme (UAEP) will benefit over 30,000 households in low-income areas at a cost of US$23.5M.
In addition, Government has allocated $300M to help Guyana Power and Light (GPL) supply electricity to households that fall outside the UAEP.
The Company generating capacity will also be increased, improving the quality and reliability of electricity supply, with the installation of 60-65 megawatts of new electricity generating units.
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Housing schemes in line for massive development
-Country-wide programme launched
Georgetown, GINA, March 13, 2005.
All housing schemes countrywide are in for massive infrastructural development works.
This was disclosed by Minister of Housing and Water, Shaik Baksh during his visit yesterday to several housing areas in Region Three (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara).
At Clay Brick Road, Bell West, Minister Baksh inspected a non-functional well. The Minister explained that the community is receiving a minimal supply of water and that he would work to improve the situation.
The Minister directed a team of technical personnel from the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI), who was on the location, to carry out inspection of the well. Minister Baksh said that “this is being done to determine the possibility of rehabilitating the well so that residents can receive a good supply of water.” He added that “pending the report from GWI, the well may be rehabilitated at a cost of some $8M or instead, a new well may be sunk.”
Minister Baksh also met residents of Bell West Housing scheme, Canal No.2, where he informed residents of a plan to develop their community. He told residents “the Government’s has a housing development plan that caters for all the old housing schemes including Sophia,” adding that “there are other plans for developing the newly established schemes.”
According to Minister Baksh, “the Inter-American Development Bank will be funding a project to construct all the main roads in the various housing areas.”
In relation to electricity, the Minister said Guyana Power and Light would be undertaking a project to install poles along the main roads in all the housing schemes.” He noted that the Government would provide transformers while residents would be required to assist with the extension of electricity to their homes.
With reference to Drainage and Irrigation, Minister Baksh said that drainage channels would be excavated.
Minister Baksh also visited Parfaite Harmonie at Canal No.1, Cornelia Ida and Tuschen North on the East Bank Essequibo, where similar meetings were held.
During all meetings the Minister informed residents of the developmental plans for their areas. He also addressed concerns raised by some residents.
There are more than one hundred housing areas throughout the country and the Government has launched various programmes to improve the schemes in areas of water supply, electricity, drainage and infrastructural development.
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