PRIME Minister Moses Nagamootoo has made a commitment to support the upgrading of Radio Paiwomak, based at Bina Hill in Annai, North Rupununi.On a recent visit to Regions Eight and Nine, the Prime Minister toured the Radio Paiwomak studio and observed the shabby conditions under which employees work, including the lack of suitable chairs and furnishings for announcers. Broken windows were in evidence, as were rotting and leaking roofs and unsuitable conditions under which the equipment were being stored.
He immediately asked that Radio Paiwomak Coordinator Virgil Harding meet with the Director of Public Information, Imran Khan, to itemise the station’s needs and to provide immediate support to upgrade the facilities.
Harding also asked that the 100-foot transmission tower be extended by another 50 feet, and that directional antennas be installed to allow signal reach to be extended as far as Fairview on the bank of the Essequibo River.
Prime Minister Nagamootoo committed to giving this request consideration in the 2017 budget. A structure to facilitate better compensation for the Radio Paiwomak administrator and announcers will also be pursued as part of the next budget cycle.
Prime Minister Nagamootoo instructed that plans be put in place to conduct an introductory training programme for new broadcasters to train persons in the North Rupununi who are interested in radio broadcasting.
During the visit, the Prime Minister and his delegation, which included Vice President and Minister of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs, Sydney Allicock, also met with the executives of the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB), to listen to issues of concern.
The Prime Minister presented a Certificate of Recognition to the NRDDB for the work it has been doing in social and economic upliftment of the North Rupununi. He presented a Certificate of Recognition to the Annai Secondary School for winning the inaugural LCDS Climate Change National Quiz Competition, and he gave solar LED lights to children of the community to assist them at nights in reading and preparing for classes and examinations.
Radio Paiwomak, the first hinterland community radio station in Guyana, was launched in 2000. It has provided continuous service to communities of the North Rupununi for almost 16 years, and broadcasts in English and Amerindian languages.
In 2015, the station suffered from a critical loss of power, but the Office of the Prime Minister presented it with batteries costing several hundred thousand dollars, thus allowing it to continue broadcasting uninterruptedly, the Office of the Prime Minister has said in a release.
The North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB) comprises 18 villages and three satellite communities.
