At stakeholders forum…

Minister of Housing and Water addressing the gathering. Sitting at the head table from left are GWI PRO, Mr. Rawle Aaron; Vice Chairman of GWI Board of Directors, Mr. Ramesh Dookhoo; Chairman of GWI Board of Directors, Dr Cyril Solomon; Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Housing and Water, Mr. Emil McGarrell; and CEO (Acting) GWI, Mr. Yuri Chandisingh.

GUYANA Water Inc. (GWI), on Monday, exhorted stakeholders to play their part in moving the local sector forward and make it viable and sustainable.

The exhortation was issued at a forum on ‘GWI strategic vision 2012’ in Regency Suites, Hadfield Street, Werk-en-rust, Georgetown.

The aim of the programme was to share, with a wide cross-section of them, the various aspects of GWI operations and future prospects.

Public Relations Officer (PRO), Mr. Rawle Aaron said the vision of the utility started with the turnaround plan conceptualised in 2007 to pilot it through a difficult period.

That vision began with a clear and strong commitment by a young and dynamic team, who came up with a plan that revitalised the sector amidst the threats that existed then,” he recalled.

Aaron said there are growing threats to the sector and a need for a resurgence of ideas, reinvigoration of plans and continued loyalty from all stakeholders.

He said the event was significant at a critical junction of GWI’s life.

Minister of Housing and Water, Mr. Irfaan Ali, in opening remarks, said, throughout Guyana, a number of public and private officials usually call for consultative mechanisms to be put in place as strategies are developed for plotting the way ahead.

He said GWI has found it necessary to embark on this journey together with major stakeholders, including the Private Sector, the donor community, the manufacturing sector and chairmen of the coastal regions.

Ali noted that a young team will be driving the water sector into the future and explained: “What we are trying to do is to create a modern, responsive and proactive organisation, driven by change and embodied in good corporate governance, manifested in high degrees of efficiency, transparency and customer service.”

He said that is the hallmark of what the entity is trying to achieve in the medium term, by 2012.

CHANGES
Ali said GWI is attempting to develop an organisation that is qualitatively and quantitatively ready to face the future and, in order to achieve the objective, a number of changes must occur, such as in culture, behaviour and the environment, which are critical inputs.

The organisation must be proactive. We must not wait,” he cautioned, adding that citizens must be responsible in paying for the services received.

The investment that GWI puts into advertisement and campaigns, just to get people to pay the smallest fee, that money can be better utilised in capital investment to improve the service,” Ali pointed out.

He disclosed that, over the last six months and during the next 12 months, more than $10 billion will be spent in the water sector, more than $13M per capita, which is the total subsidy from the Government of Guyana, aided by funds from the donor population.

This is the level of investment that we are putting into the system. We are going to develop an entity that is visionary,” Ali said, explaining that it will be built on strong corporate governance, ethical transparency, efficiency and consultation.

He said all of that requires human and financial resources which are critical to drive the process onward.

I am not saying that GWI is the best paying organisation but I am saying that, as an employee of GWI, we have a social responsibility to deliver, to the people, a service that is of high quality. We must take that responsibility with pride because, at the end of the day, we are contributing to national development,” Ali said.

He reiterated that the entity can be visionary by being proactive and looking at every single opportunity that presents itself to improve the system.

Sometimes, we have the misconception that Guyana is the land of many waters and water is infinite. No, water is not infinite,” Ali noted.

Against this backdrop, he said a stronger conservative mechanism must be built, to ensure there is a sustainable industry and a sustainable supply of water into the future.

If you look around the world today, we see what is happening in New Delhi. Let this be an example for us,” Ali encouraged.

He maintained that water is also critical to private sector investments and he reminded that the provision of potable water to citizens is a fundamental pillar of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

STANDARD
While we have surpassed the minimum standard, we must not be satisfied with that. We must set a standard that is high enough, so that we can catch up even with the most developed.”

Minister Ali said ownership is very important in national consensus.

He said: “The Private Sector, the manufacturing sector, the donor community, we must all feel that we own this plan and this is our plan to improve the sector. This is Guyana’s plan to improve the water sector.”

Additionally, Ali said very important is the environment, as investments cannot be continued in technology that will destroy it or contribute to global warming.

He said a people centred system must be developed at all levels, which is the basis of success and implored GWI staff to take the responsibility of service very seriously and as an opportunity to contribute to the development of Guyana.

We have to develop a system that is based on equity. Equity is a very important concept and that is why, in our investment portfolio, you will see every single region of Guyana having a fair share,” Ali said.

He emphasised: “We have one of the highest levels of subsidy in the water sector in the Caribbean here. Yet we have the lowest rates.

?ut, in the future, we will have to consolidate all these investments to ensure that GWI remains sustainable, viable and profitable.

We are not driven by profit at GWI. We are driven by our responsibility to provide this social good. I want to make that clear. But yet profit must be an important component of success because that is what is needed in order to reinvest in the sector, to ensure that we meet the growing demands and the challenges that lie ahead,” Ali reminded.

He said when hydropower is introduced and there is more aggressive macro-type agriculture, integrated water resources management will become more important.

뻊use, at that time, you will have competing demands from various users with various objectives and that is when we must grow as an organisation and be more mature to deal with the new challenges of integrated water resources management.

That is why these young managers have an exceptional future ahead of them and, more importantly, we have to understand, as individuals, the intricacies and integration of the various strategies that will take Guyana forward and analyse the impact on the water sector.”

Ali said: “We have to continuously learn and find new ways of doing things better and, more importantly, in a transparent and efficient manner.”

Among other presentations made were, on governance by Chairman of GWI Board of Directors, Dr Cyril Solomon; on the turnaround plan by Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GWI, Mr. Yuri Chandisingh; on financial reform by Director of Finance, Mr. Ravin Paltoo and by Acting Director, Mr. Altaf Gafoor on capital investment and planning.