Among the other initiatives to fight crime announced by the President were the establishment of a National Commission on Law and Order, the creation of a Community Policing Ministerial Unit, tougher action against racial incitement and violence, the introduction of the neighbourhood policing arm, penal reforms, a modern traffic control system, increased attention to white-collar crime, tougher gun control, and modernising and enhancing the law enforcement agencies' anti-crime capacity.

The President also announced the establishment a new full-time community-based arm of the Guyana Police Force. Under this programme, 600 persons drawn from their communities between the ages of 18 and 45 will be trained and employed to provide full-time residential police presence to assist in the prevention and reduction of crime in their communities. The neighbourhood police will also support community policing groups...

The waiver of duty and taxes on surveillance technology for the private sector was also announced by the President who said he is aware of the unique exposure of the business community to criminal onslaughts.

President Jagdeo said his government's approach to the fight against crime and violence in the society is guided by its assessment of the crime statistics in Guyana and in the region.

Also influencing the approach was the changing nature of crime, particularly its violent and trans-national features.

He stated that the approach is also guided by the government's review of what other countries have done and are doing to fight crime.

Guyana’s economic, social and political realities were also taken into consideration.

President Jagdeo declared that the implementation of the anti-drug strategy would need to be resourced by the combined efforts of Central Government and its bilateral and multilateral partners. He stated that the $650 million minimum requirement is a significant sum of money for Guyana but appears paltry when compared to the resources provided elsewhere in the hemisphere to fight narco-trafficking.

The President stated there must be heightened involvement by all stakeholders in implementing crime prevention and crime fighting measures through the establishment of a National Commission on Law and Order. The commission would include representatives of the government, the parliamentary opposition, youth, religious organisations, academia, the private sector, and organised labour. The commission's mandate will include the examination of existing and proposed policies and make recommendations to the President.

Guyana signs PetroCaribe agreement

Guyana on June 29 signed on to the PetroCaribe agreement presented by President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela. However, the country cannot immediately benefit from the loan financing available under the proposed fuel initiative unless “substantial work” at the bilateral level is completed, according to President Bharrat Jagdeo.

“The agreement that was signed is more of a framework agreement. . . .the bilaterals still have to be worked out between countries,” he pointed out at a news conference on June 30 at the Presidential Secretariat in Georgetown.

The Guyanese Head of State described the initiative, which was presented by President Chavez during the PetroCaribe summit in Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela, as more about financing than cheap oil.

He said there is a “set percentage” of credit that can be accessed based on oil prices.

“If fuel prices hit a particular dollar level then the countries can benefit from a soft loan; what they have done is to improve the conditions of that loan and to add another level,” he said.

The President pointed out that based on this level, if the oil price is US$15 per barrel, a beneficiary country can get a 5 percent credit line; if it’s US$20 per barrel, it moves to 10 percent; if it’s US$22 it’s 15 percent; US$24 – 20 percent; US$30 – 25 percent; US$40 – 30 percent; US$50 – 40 percent; and US$100 per barrel will see 50 percent going back as a loan for the country over a specified period.

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, who represented Guyana at the summit, said the initiative holds “copious benefits” for the economy in both the short and long term, especially in the area of energy consumption.

The focal point of the summit was enabling Guyana and other Caribbean and South American countries to benefit from a concession designed to help mitigate the possible effects of rapid export of foreign exchange on economies resulting from increased fuel prices on the international markets.

The issue of assistance to members in exploration, refining and marketing petroleum was also discussed.

Of the 16 countries at the summit, only Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago did not sign the agreement. Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning expressed concern that PetroCaribe would be a competitor to T&T and said he wants more time for his government to study the document.

At the summit, Guyana proposed the insertion of a sentence in the final agreement to highlight issues relating to Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC). The sentence reads: "Given the special circumstances of heavily indebted poor countries, the terms and conditions of the applicable financing arrangements will be determined through bilateral discussions."

This is in relation to the financing mechanisms to purchase fuel under the Caracas Energy Accord. Since the financing from Venezuela is regarded as a loan, Guyana has to keep in line with its HIPC commitments which do not allow it to acquire new loans above a certain percentage rate.

The nations which attended the summit in Venezuela were Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Bahamas, Belize, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Dominica, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

Intense development plan for Linden

Efforts to ensure the economic security of Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Upper Berbice) were boosted with the signing of a memorandum of agreement between the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) and the Linden Economic Advancement Programme (LEAP), for the formulation of a regional development plan within 30 months.

This will facilitate the outline of initiatives to be undertaken in order to assure economic development for all sectors of Region 10, particularly the private sector.

The Linden Economic Advancement Fund (LEAF) has contributed $3 million towards the creation of a regional development unit within the RDC. The RDC has sought assistance from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to provide support through the services of a United Nations volunteer attached to the RDC.

Under its Social Cohesion Project, the UNDP will also contribute resources to facilitate the formulation of a five-year Regional Development Plan, in accordance with the National Development Strategy.

Residents of the region will be involved in a wide range of consultations to ensure that they are part of the decision-making process.

This programme will be based on the Participatory Appraisal of Competitive Advantage (PACA) methodology which was developed to identify sectors, sub-sectors and clusters, with potential for development.

The PACA exercise commenced on June 6, 2005, with an initial training of 15 stakeholders including the RDC, the Linden municipality, private local consultants and LEAP.

The activities under the programme are designed to assist the private sector in creating or expanding business ventures, and generate an investor-friendly environment to compensate for the reduction in the mining sector. It will also assist public authorities, through certain infrastructure investments, in new economic sectors.

At the launching of the Linden Economic Advancement Fund (LEAF) on April 29, President Jagdeo stressed that only the people of Linden can ensure the success of these programmes, along with the continued support from Government, in this and other projects.

Private nursing school launched

Health Minister, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy announced on June 20 that government has approved $100 million to expand the public sector's nursing training programme this year. This expansion would see the commencement of training of 250 students in September.

Dr. Ramsammy made the disclosure during the launching of the Universal Emergency Care School of Nursing at the Guyana Nurses Association. The new private training school is the brainchild of Dr. Roy London. Classes would commence on July 15.

Dr. London said his vision is to see Guyana become the centre of nursing education in the Caribbean. The objective of the new school's programme is to teach the combination of the North American and Guyanese approach to nursing. He noted that nursing has been growing more towards a technological approach and the necessary skills would have to be imparted to the students.

Dr. Ramsammy welcomed Dr. London's initiative, stating that he has long been advocating that the private sector should become involved in the training of nurses.

The Minister noted that training in nursing has, in the past, always been in the public sector domain. Apart from the new school, only a small training facility is being run by the St. Joseph’s Mercy Hospital.

Dr. Ramsammy stated that government's training programme will be expanded even more in 2006, with two batches of 250 students each.

The $100 million will be used for improving teaching facilities, stipends, equipment, text books, and other teaching aid. An additional fifteen tutors will also be employed.

Nations University inaugurated

The launching in Guyana of the Nations University on June 19 has been hailed as an “exciting new adventure” which has full support from the Guyana Government. Through the first private university in the country, Guyanese can now study for degrees from the prestigious University of London University of London.

International Development Advisor, Dr Susan Gidman who was in Guyana to help Nations University make the arrangements and organise the study programme, assured that the quality of the degrees awarded through external study is comparable to those gained through residential study.

She explained that studying externally offers greater flexibility and students could complete a degree programme in about three to eight years, but cautioned that students have to programme their time in a disciplined manner.

Prime Minister Sam Hinds, assuring the government’s full support of the venture, said the new university would create competition and help the University of Guyana “keep on track of getting better” which is good for improvement of higher education.

He urged too that Guyanese should strive to learn from people and institutions from everywhere and said the collaboration with the University of London provides the opportunity to do so.

Banks DIH upgrades vehicle fleet

Banks DIH Limited in 2003 began upgrading its delivery fleet and has since purchased 13 containerized box vehicles at $169 million, providing protection from heat and light for loads of bottled water and sodas in plastic bottles.

And over the next 10 years the company plans to replace/upgrade 75 to 80 of its delivery vehicles. Each of these new vehicles cost US$65,000.

With assistance from the Guyana Office for Investment (Go-Invest) the company gained concessions to import the trucks along with a US$1 million one-megawatt generator.

Addressing a media group at Thirst Park on June 18, Shabir Hussein, chief executive officer of Building Transport and Power Generation Engineering at Banks, said that with Go-Invest support the company's cost of importing the vehicles was reduced significantly. For example, he said, the generator would have cost US$1.4 million without any tax concessions. The Hyundai Korean one-megawatt generator replaces one that was damaged and is a back-up to five other generators which are 25 years old.

The power demand of the company is about three megawatts and currently Banks has around 40 percent of this capacity.

Hussein noted also that the old trucks were not giving the company a competitive advantage nor were they contributing to its corporate image.

Free uniforms for Amerindian schoolchildren

The government, through the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, will soon be distributing free school uniforms in all Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam) indigenous communities. The apparel would be for nursery, primary and secondary schoolchildren in the nine designated settlements.

Over the past 12 years, the government has also spent millions of dollars to develop Amerindians communities across that region. Wakapoa, St. Monica and Kabakaburi have new village offices in which councillors meet to discuss the affairs of their respective local authorities. Further, a sum of $900,000 was provided towards construction of another village office at Tapakuma.

Four of the nine Amerindian villages now have radio sets and can easily communicate with other such locations around the country and Georgetown. In addition, some Amerindians also have access to telephone and Internet services.

Rodney monument unveiled

A monument was unveiled on June 13 in recognition of the struggles of the late Dr. Walter Rodney on Hadfield Street, directly in front of the Smith’s Memorial Primary School where he received his first education.

The unveiling was part of the observances to mark the 25th anniversary of Rodney’s assassination. The activities were coordinated by the 25th Anniversary Commemoration Committee.

The widow of Walter Rodney, Dr. Patricia Rodney, unveiled the monument and addressed students and teachers of the Smith’s Memorial Primary School where she spoke about her husband’s struggles and accomplishments.

She encouraged the students to seriously study their history, focus on obtaining their education and to learn every aspect of their country.

Organiser of the proceedings, Jocelyn Dow said a rock was used as the monument, since Rodney should be considered a cornerstone of great strength and an inspiration to every heart. The rock is decorated with pieces of jasper and tiny bits of black pearls.

She related that the site of the monument would be further decorated and completed with the assistance of the Demerara Distillers Limited, Banks DIH and the Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GT&T) among others.

Dr. Patricia Rodney was joined by her daughters and other relatives to plant four palms around the monument.

IDB to fund Corentyne road

The Guyana Government and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) on June 6 signed a US$41.1 million agreement for funding the reconstruction of the New Amsterdam to Moleson Creek Road in Region Six (East Berbice/Corentyne).

The IDB is currently funding the repairs of the road from Timehri to Moleson Creek and the bridges component of that project. The part from New Amsterdam to Moleson Creek is the final phase of the project. The project entails the re-surfacing of approximately 86 kilometres of road and the re-construction of 80 structures including culverts and bridges along its route.

The project also includes the construction of two roads – Princess Elizabeth and Strand roads which provide entrance and exit to New Amsterdam.

Finance Minister Saisnarine Kowlessar and IDB's Manager of Regional Operations Cero Defalco affixed their signatures to the agreement.

Free textbooks for secondary school students

The G$216 million contract for the printing of these text books was on June 7 signed by the contractors and the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education, Pulandar Kandhi in the Ministry’s boardroom.

The plan entails printing of approximately 53,370 textbooks. A contract was awarded to the Caribbean Education Publishers who will be printing some 40,300 books at a cost of $167 million; the Nelson Book Turns will be responsible for 5,400 textbooks at a cost of $17 million and the Macmillan publishing company will be handling some 550 books at a cost of $1.3 million.

The subject areas in which the book will be printed are English, Geography, Mathematics, Information Technology, Social Studies and Integrated Science. Grammar books and atlases will also be printed.

The books are expected to be supplied within two months.

US support for democracy and governance

The purpose of the agreement is to support activities that foster economic growth and democracy and governance in Guyana.

The economic growth aspect of the amendment has attracted US$1.5 million, while the democracy and governance fraction is nearly US$2 million.

The aid is part of a US$20 million package over five years, ending 2008.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Ambassador Bullen said that under the Democracy and Governance Programme, or the Guyana Democracy Consolidation and Conflict Resolution Programme (GDCCR), as it is also known, the US has provided significant material and technical assistance to the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), the judicial system, the Ethnic Relations Commission, and a variety of civil society organizations.

Projects for Pomeroon/Supenaam

Two drainage concrete tubes will be constructed at Johanna Cecelia and Queenstown, and two health posts at Siriki in Upper Pomeroon and Lima Sands will be extended.

Two nursery schools will be constructed at Anna Regina and Good Hope, and streets in Riverstown, Sparta and Maria's Lodge, Zorg, Richmond and Suddie will be upgraded.

For improved drainage and irrigation, three irrigation concrete checks will be constructed at Devonshire Castle, Anna Regina and Middlesex; tail walls and tail wall gates will be constructed at Reliance, Little Alliance, Maria's Delight and Better Hope.

A concrete regulator is to be constructed at Sparta while box culverts will be built at Middlesex, Airy Hall, Johanna Cecelia, Anna Regina and Andrews. Timber revetment is also to be built at Mc Nabb, Zorg, Adventure and Riverstown, while access dams will be upgraded at Better Hope, Lima and Henrietta.

Boosting agriculture in Essequibo

In an effort to boost agricultural development in Essequibo the government has funded two projects valued at more than $53.1million for the construction of farm to market roads and desilting drainage canals. About $36.4 million will be spent to construct five miles of road at Dartmouth. More than 300 farmers and members of the Dartmouth Development Association will benefit from the project. The road will provide access to farm lands and will boost agriculture production in the community. Another contract valued over $16.7 million for the desilting of some 3,560 rods of drainage canals and constructing culverts will shortly commence.

The desilting of drainage canals in the North New Road area and rehabilitation of culverts are to provide efficient and reliable drainage for hundreds of acres of rice and other farmlands.

“Intensify South-South cooperation” – Ambassador Ishmael

Guyana has urged Latin American and Caribbean countries to intensify South-South cooperation, solidarity and coordination to counter problems created by changing trade regimes imposed by developed countries. This position was expressed by Guyana’s Ambassador to Venezuela Odeen Ishmael when he spoke at the forum on regional issues in the multilateral trade negotiations organised by the Latin American Economic System (SELA) in Caracas on June 6-8.

Among the main participants were trade policy specialists from the Regional Negotiating Machinery (RNM) of CARICOM, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the Inter-American Institute for Agricultural Cooperation (IICA), the Andean Community, the Central American Integration System (SIECA) and Mercosur.

The forum concentrated its discussions on the issue of special and differential (S&D) treatment for smaller economies within the multilateral negotiations, particularly those of the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

In a comprehensive analysis, Mr. Nigel Durrant, the RNM’s agricultural trade specialist, explained the problems regarding this issue, and noted that in the negotiations, solidarity and support for demands raised by the RNM are not firmly expressed by other less developed countries experiencing similar economic situations as those of the Caribbean region.

Taking up this issue, Ambassador Ishmael proposed that the smaller economies of the western hemisphere, represented largely by CARICOM and Central America, should take the lead by consulting on a regular basis with other regional trade groups such as Mercosur and the Andean Community, and also with the African Union, to inform them of specific S&D negotiation issues, and requesting their solidarity and support.

Such coordination, he opined, would help in making these trading groups fully aware of the concerns of the smaller economies and, thus, would not be taken by surprise when such issues are raised during the multilateral negotiations. By doing this, he added, countries in these “friendly” groups will be in a better position to voice support for positions raised by CARICOM and other smaller economies.

The Guyanese ambassador explained that South-South solidarity is becoming even more necessary at this time when the European Union (EU) is experiencing a series of political setbacks. Considering that the EU is planning to cut the special and differential treatment for sugar from the ACP countries, he said the Europeans would be concentrating their efforts to find solutions to their internal political problems. As a result, the call by ACP countries to reconsider the proposed new pricing regime may not be regarded as a major EU priority at this time.

• Guyana’s total outstanding external debt of about US$1.1 billion will be reduced by some US$336 million with the historic deal clinched by the Finance Ministers of the Group of Eight (G-8) industrialised countries to write off more than $40 billion of poor nations’ debt. The deal, struck by Finance Ministers from the G-8 industrialised nations in London after months of tense negotiations, leaves leaders to consider proposals for doubling aid at a summit in Gleneagles, Scotland, July 6-8.

• The construction of the new arrival terminal at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri, is 80 percent complete and is scheduled to be completed at the end of August. The G$231 million project, which is being executed by a Trinidadian firm, Bacchus Construction General Contractors, caters for three new duty-free shops and includes more accommodation for the immigration booths, a tourism booth, a post office and two other concessions.

• Sixty army and police ranks completed a two-week training course in Counter Narcotics Terrorism conducted by a 14-member team of the Florida National Guard (FNG) at Base Camp Stephenson (BCS), Timehri. During the period June 11-25, Captain Scott Taylor of the overseas-based unit trained the members of the Guyana Defence Force and the Police Force in marksmanship, medical treatment and urban operations.

• Senior citizens of Regions Seven and Ten will soon have their problems addressed as Government’s Social Workers’ outreach programme intensifies. The programme undertaken by the Ministry of Labour Human Services and Social Security commenced on June 1 in Georgetown. The outreach programme was introduced earlier in Regions One, Two, Three, Four, Five and Six and the feedback is positive.

• President Bharrat Jagdeo on June 20 launched a youth training programme at the Banks DIH Caribanks site. The venture is private sector driven in collaboration with the President's Youth Choice Initiative and the Board of Industrial Training (BIT). Banks DIH Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Clifford Reis said a youth training facility was completed in April and have already seen students from the Kuru Kuru Training College being trained in welding.

• Several thousand tonnes of wet cocoa beans have been reaped by Region One organic growers and twice as much is expected by year end. The organic cocoa project in the Region is important in many ways including as a diversification thrust to move away from the traditional rice and sugar production.

• The new Governor of the Bank of Guyana, Mr. Lawrence Williams, took the oath of office on June 8 before President Bharrat Jagdeo at the Office of the President. Williams replaces Ms. Dolly Singh who acted in the position for several years. She has since retired.

• Rotorway International Guyana Incorporated, which is now assembling helicopters, plans to expand its operations locally. But, with more businesses and individuals showing interest in buying the aircraft, there is a greater need for trained pilots to man them, the company’s Public Relations Officer, Mr. Avery Gomes said. In addition to offering an extended warranty with service and maintenance included, Rotorway is providing six weeks of training for potential pilots selected by any buyer.

• Forty sheep rearers recently participated in a seminar on production practices organised by the Ministry of Fisheries, Crops and Livestock at Queenstown Community Centre on Essequibo Coast in Region Two (Pomeroon/Supenaam). Topics on the course covered selection of rams for breeding, how to care the animals and treatment of diseases.

• Australia is funding a community First Aid project in Guyana to help residents cope with natural disasters like the January floods, the Guyana Red Cross has reported. The Red Cross said that in the aftermath of the recent floods, it has embarked on the project in collaboration with the government and people of Australia.

• Former Ambassador of Guyana, Dr. Cedric Grant, died at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation on June 15 after a sudden heart attack. Dr. Grant served as Ambassador to the United States until 1992. Until his death, he was a professor at Clark-Atlanta University in the United States. He was 69 years old.

Credits: Stabroek News, Chronicle, Mirror, Kaieteur News, GINA

Compiled and edited by Evangeline Ishmael