Effects of heavy rainfall reduced-Dr. Luncheon
-gov’t investment major contributor
Georgetown, GINA, January 11, 2008
The effects of the current rainy season have decreased due to the vast investment made by the administration since the January 2005 devastating floods. This observation was made by Head of the Presidential Secretariat and Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon.
“The current rainy season continues and is marked more by unpredictability and volatility. Overall, the investment in the sector has so far seen a significantly lessened impact on the lives and livelihood of vulnerable groupings and population,” Dr. Luncheon said.
The Cabinet Secretary said what must be noted is that the low-lying areas remain vulnerable to intense rainfall but rehabilitative work on flood control has shortened the duration of the resulting flooding.
“Cabinet has initiated a re-look at gravity flow flood control, especially in the context of rising fuel prices, hence the cost of mechanical drainage. More attention will be paid to clearing/dredging of outfalls, rehabilitation of sluices and kokers and the creation of groynes. Dredges of course, will demand modern facilities for use at outfalls,” Dr. Luncheon outlined.
In December, Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud disclosed that approximately $660M was spent to carry out preparatory works to lessen the effects of the rainy season.
The activities which began shortly after the May/June rains were carried out in Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Ten.
Additionally, $22M is being spent to carry out other preparatory works at the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC).
“Considerable work has been done at the conservancies and more is yet to be done, to improve capacity, to promote drainage/outflow and secure the integrity of the dam,” the Cabinet Secretary said.
These resources are in addition to the annual capital programme of approximately $1B spent annually to strengthen the D&I system through which various major projects are ongoing.
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GTA launches Management Information System
– to monitor tourist arrivals
Government, GINA, January 11, 2008
The Guyana Tourism Authority (GTA) has implemented a new software programme, the Management Information System for Tourism (MIST) to replace the Guyana Tourism Information System which was previously used to capture data and monitor tourist arrivals into the country.
MIST is piloted by the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) and is conceived to improve the ability of the Caribbean tourism industries to manage and develop a sustainable market. It will also enhance their ability to respond to the changing market environment in which they operate and will strengthen information infrastructure to improve management capabilities of the tourism sector.
The new programme is being funded by the European Union at a cost of US$0.5M and is being implemented in all CARIFORUM countries.
A CTO team is currently in the country installing the system at several locations and conducting training for staff. This includes the Guyana Tourism Authority and the National Bureau of Statistics while provisions are underway for installation at several other sites.
Executive Director of the GTA, Indranauth Haralsingh said this year, the GTA will capture and analyse data from all the ports-of-entry including Lethem and Moleson Creek which will enable the organisation to make better analysis of the main markets and trends in its decision-making and marketing strategies.
MIST will be used for the production of a quarterly arrival digest and to provide information requested by investors, stakeholders, teachers, students and tourists. The new programme has the ability to generate over 200 types of reports pertaining to one’s country of origin, purpose of visit, length of stay, port-of-entry, type of carrier, residence and age among other information.
The implementation of MIST shows the commitment of Government through the Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce to use information technology in the tourism sector to make Guyana a more attractive tourism destination. It will serve as both a national and regional integrated management system, designed to act as a tourism information, planning, research and information tool.
Guyana is now on par with several CTO/CARIFORUM member States including Jamaica, Grenada, Antigua, St. Lucia and the Dominican Republic. It will be implemented in Belize, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago shortly.
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Gov’t continues to support Police Force
-more allocations for vehicles, communication equipment
Georgetown, GINA, January 11, 2008
Government has prioritized the development of the Guyana Police Force (GPF) through several interventions with the allocation of resources taking top priority.
Head of the Presidential Secretariat and Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon announced that $54.6M has been approved by Cabinet for the procurement of vehicles, $15.4M for communication equipment and $243.3M for the purchase of material for uniforms.
Since 1993, the budgetary allocation for security has been increasing significantly with $9.3B being allocated in 2007, the largest amount in history.
During 2007, the Police Force received $458.6M for procurement of equipment and $39.4M for land and water transportation.
From 2002 to 2006 a significant amount of funds was allocated to the Force to increase its efficiency: 2002-$554M; 2003-$496M; 2004-$630M; 2005-$865M and 2006-$721M.
These allocations allowed for the construction and rehabilitation of Police stations, purchase of vehicles, boats, equipment, furniture, arms and ammunition.
In 2005, there were approximately 19 police stations refurbished while $105M was spent on acquiring equipment for communications, fingerprinting, photographs, ballistics, forensics, traffic, arms and ammunition and horses.
The Vigilance, Madhia, Mabaruma, Charity, Suddie, Providence and Ruimveldt Police stations were among those reconstructed.
Since 2005 four modern police stations have been established at Bartica, Diamond/Grove, Turkeyen/Sophia and Fort Wellington at a cost of over $109M.
In September Cabinet approved $24M for the procurement of arms and ammunition. The Force’s forensic laboratory has benefited from $32.3M worth of equipment that includes replacements and acquisition of new gear.
These allocations have allowed the Force to improve net results in crime fighting with a 24 percent decrease in serious crimes in 2007 and with the murder rate for that year being the lowest since 2002 with 113 for the year.
According to Police statistics, serious crimes have moved from 16 per day to 9 per day.
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New $86.6M mobile pump to solve East Coast Demerara drainage woes
Georgetown, GINA, January 11, 2008
A new mobile hydraulic pump at Hope, East Coast Demerara was commissioned today signalling another commitment by government to strengthen the capacity of the drainage and irrigation system.
The new system will supplement the function of sluices which have been the traditional source of drainage and irrigation.
The pump which was commissioned by Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud is one of two stationed at Hope and Greenfield to serve the two communities as well as those adjoining, such as Belfield, Two Friends, Anns Grove and Clonbrook and other areas vulnerable to inundation.
The commissioning was held in the presence of representatives of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) Chairman of Region Four Clement Corlette, several farmers and other residents from the area.
The two hydraulically-driven drainage pumps were procured by the Ministry of Agriculture through the NDIA which contracted the MWI Corporation of the United States of America.
The installation and supervision of the process which was undertaken by the NDIA took four months. The pumps are mounted on a mobile skid, fitted with 36-inch discharge pipes and 350 horse power engines.
They have the capacity to discharge 560 gallons of water per second which, over a five-hour period, can lead to 10,000 gallons of water being discharged.
Minister Persaud speaking on the initiative said government intends to implement more mechanical drainage measures this year in various parts of the coastland including the Essequibo Islands.
The East Coast of Demerara is expected to benefit from the installation of more than 40 pumps which will add to efforts to improve drainage and irrigation.
The Minister said that mobile pumps have proven to be the most efficient way of responding to drainage and have been the method used in other countries faced by natural disasters. The effectiveness of this system in Guyana, he noted was realised during the 2005 floods.
“We have to intervene in this way because we are below sea level and we can only open sluices at low tide. This restricts the amount of hours we can actually do drainage… we had close to four inches of rainfall within a 18-hour period and this puts pressure on our capacity since the infrastructure was designed to deal with two inches of rainfall per day,” Minister Persaud said.
While expressing confidence in the new system and the level of co-operation between the Ministry and the Region, Minister Persaud noted his disappointment in the way in which drainage systems are often compromised.
He made reference to several acts of vandalism on pumps and dams and the habit of disposing garbage in the waterways which leads to major siltation. He issued an appeal for residents to protect these resources.
The pumps will be to the benefit of farmers and other residents of the area according to Regional Chairman Clement Corlette who lauded the level of cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Regional Administration which boosted the region’s plans for drainage and irrigation efforts.
Corlette said the region spent some $23M in capital work as part of its work programme, with $61M being expended for maintenance.
“Maintenance will be very important to a successful drainage programme but it will also include keeping the canals clean. I must take this opportunity to appeal to our residents to desist from throwing garbage into the canal… you can help us by being more careful in garbage disposal,” Corlette said.
Government spends close to $600M to manage the drainage and irrigation system and also intends to undertake a project of rehabilitating old kokers and sluices.
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Over 200 women complete training programme
–under the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security
Georgetown, GINA, January 11, 2008
The programmes organized by the Guyana Women’s Leadership Institute (GWLI) were held for women’s group in all the administrative Regions except in Seven and Eight in 2007 under the theme “Capacity Building for Skills Advancement and Leadership”.
GWLI operates under the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security and has been aiding Government’s vision through various initiatives to improve the lives of Guyanese, particularly women.
During October to December, 199 participants completed the programme in Regions Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Ten. In Region Nine, 29 trainees participated in the course; of which 22 were selected as trainers to replicate the training programme in 42 communities in the Region.
The programmes which catered for 40 women and girls in each Region, provided knowledge and information to develop and enhance their leadership capacity to participate and influence decisions that affect their lives within their families, groups and communities.
Some of the major subjects offered in the programme’s first phase are Self, Leadership, Community Development, Communication, Image Building and Etiquette, Healthy Lifestyles and Skills Training.
Through these programmes Government’s mandate which includes the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination (CEDAW) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) are being fulfilled.
Women and girls were nominated and recruited from Community Based Organisations (CBOs) and Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), Faith Based Organisations, women’s arms of political parties and other leaders within the communities.
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The Guyana Annual’s 2007-2008 edition launched
- a medium to highlight Guyanese literary artists – Minister Anthony
Georgetown GINA, January 11, 2008
Since its resuscitation in 1988 by Dr. Tulsi Dyal Singh, the Guyana Annual which has been preserving Guyana’s literary heritage and culture was launched at Castellani House today.
The 2007-2008 edition of the magazine which publishes the views of Guyanese writers both young and old through short stories, poems and articles was launched in the presence of Minister of Culture Youth and Sport Dr. Frank Anthony, Editor of the Magazine, Pitamber Persaud and poets who had their work published in the magazine.
The occasion was highlighted by the presentation of prizes and a copy of the book to poets whose work are published in the magazine.
A copy of the magazine was handed over to Castellani House, the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GT&T) which is one of the corporate sponsors, the National Library, the University of Guyana and the National Archives. The magazine comprises 163 articles, 222 poems and 100 stories.
Minister Anthony in his remarks said the book has for years served as a medium where aspiring writers can be discovered, where careers can be launched and where Guyanese literature can be shared around the region and the world.
The promotion of cultural heritage is an area where major effort by the Ministry has been placed and which will be highlighted this year with the hosting of the Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) X.
This year, which he noted can be considered the year for culture will be featuring literary work of Guyanese. He referred to a new initiative of resurrecting books from the fifteenth century to be launched at CARIFESTA.
The Ministry in December also launched “Festival of Words” in commemoration of the life and work of Guyanese literary icon Martin Carter. The occasion which highlights the work of current Guyanese poets will be an annual feature and will be included in the “Guyana Annual” magazine.
The magazine published by Guyenterprise Advertising Agency and printed by the Ramsaywack Arjun Printing and Graphics can be purchased for $1000.
The book has been gaining momentum each year according to its editor who highlighted its new compositions which include The Martin Carter Prize and the Egbert Martin Poetry Prize.
The book also has a new section labelled the Guy-aspora featuring news, views and literature from Guyanese in the Diaspora.
‘The two new compositions are to accommodate the younger emerging writers (under 13) who were previously grouped at a disadvantage with the more mature youths,” Pitamber said.
The magazine in the next seven years will be celebrating 100 years of existence, outliving other regional and international literary magazines and journals
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Two of three weapons recovered, belong to GDF
Georgetown, GINA, January 11, 2008
Two of the three weapons discovered by the police on Wednesday at Mahaicony belong to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF).
According to a GDF press release, the weapons were issued to the Ministry of National Development in 1976 and 1979 respectively and were never returned to the army.
The M72 gun and the Beretta submachine gun belong to the army.
The weapons were discovered in a boat in the Zeskendren, Mahaicony drainage canal along with several other items including; a semi automatic rifle; one telescope; two camouflage jacket; cutlasses, torchlight and insect repellant.
The police were investigating a report from residents that three strange men in a boat were seen acting in a suspicious manner and the men opened fire as the police approached. A fire fight ensued causing the gunmen to flee leaving some of their weapons behind.
The occupants of the boat escaped during the shootout.
Government in its continuing efforts to reduce crime is providing more resources to the security services reducing their response time to respond to reports.
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