– Regional Chairman

THE Region 6 (East Berbice/ Corentyne) Regional Democratic Council (RDC) had a capital programme of $383.4M and a current programme of $3.7M for 2013. At a regional press conference held on Friday at the RDC’s boardroom at Vryman’s Erven in New Amsterdam, Regional Chairman David Armogan was pleased to make the following announcement: “We have completed almost all the work that was given to us, and the money that was sent back to central government was basically wages and salaries that we couldn’t expend.”

He disclosed that funds were spent under education, health, drainage and irrigation, and roads. “Over one hundred roads were completed in our capital programme, and as well as under a programme carried out by the Ministry of Public Works; and hopefully, this will benefit the communities and the residents there.
“One of the things that we have done is that we did not isolate communities, we did roads in almost every community in our region,” he declared.
Armogan also told reporters that, in each community, between two and three roads were either rehabilitated or upgraded. This, he said, has led to an improved road network in the region.
Health care delivery
In the health sector, he said several houses for doctors were rehabilitated last year, while the Mibicuri Hospital Mortuary was rebuilt and the Health Centre at Barakara along the Canje River was also rehabilitated. Equipment for health-care delivery was also purchased for health centres and hospitals across the region.
“We also purchased an ATV and boat and engine for the Orealla people. The boat will be delivered before the end of the month. The whole idea is to convert this boat into an ambulance boat to be used by the Medex and nurse at Orealla,” Armogan disclosed.

EDUCATION
In the education sector, Armogan said the second phase of the Albion Front Nursery School has been completed, and when the third phase of the project is completed, students will be able to move back into the building.
Other schools benefiting from the region’s 2013 capital programme include the Lower Corentyne Secondary, where an annex was constructed; Belvedere Primary School; the Berbice High School, and the New Amsterdam Multilateral School.
“The JC Chandisingh Secondary also came in for major works during the course of last year; and that school, to my mind, is the best looking high school that we have in the region,” he declared.
Last September, Regional Councillor Kevin Crawford from the coalition A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) praised the administration for the work done to the school, and asked that all the schools in the region get a similar facelift.
Armogan said that as a result of timely visits by education officers to schools last year, several programmes have been developed and are expected to be implemented this year to tackle several of the problems that have surfaced in the region’s schools; while a minibus has been acquired for the Department of Education, which will be used to deliver text books and test papers to schools in a timely manner.

Drainage and irrigation
Speaking of drainage and irrigation, the Regional Chairman noted that in 2013, new sluices were constructed and others repaired. “All are in working order,” he assured, adding that residents of Rose Hall Town have not suffered from floods since a new drainage pump was installed there during the last quarter of 2013.
Residential communities have also benefited from six mini-excavators which were donated to the RDC by central government. The equipment was sent to the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) to carry out works on the community drainage systems and prevent flooding to those areas during the rainy season.
“…at the end of the year we also got an additional fleet of six more mini-excavators, so that adds up to 12. We are sending two to Black Bush Polder,” he informed.
This, he said, would assist cash crop farmers in that community who have, in the past suffered losses by floods during the rainy season. He added: “Once it rains and the water accumulates on the ground for more than three days, they are wiped out. This is an unacceptable situation and we are hoping that with these small drains that we are going to be digging in the Black Bush Polder area, it will assist these cash crop farmers.”
To assist those farmers, sluices at Eversham and Number 43 Village have also been rehabilitated during the past year.
Responding to questions about the frequent siltation of outfall channels in the East Berbice region, the chairman noted that it is a big problem for the administration to handle, since many of the region’s sluices are not close to the sea. “For example,” he said, “the # 43, Eversham and Lesbeholden sluices will be silted within a matter of days if you don’t have water flushing the system.”
Armogan said the administration is currently moving to install pumps at all sluices, to be able to effectively reduce excess water from both farming and residential communities.

(Michael Khan)