– Housing and Water Minister

Government remains committed towards the expansion of the Lethem area which holds great potential for economic development as a result of its proximity to Brazil. The creation of a Lethem Development Plan will see the region performing a wide range of administrative and service-oriented functions.

Because it is a land use policy-based plan, it sets out general guidelines for dealing with substantive planning issues including residential and commercial development, open spaces, transportation, tourism, industrial development and urban design.

An aerial view of the Lethem area

Minister of Housing and Water Irfaan Ali during an interview with media operatives at his Brickdam office Thursday said the Lethem Development Plan is multifaceted since it involves a number of stakeholders including the Ministries of Tourism, Housing and Water, and Agriculture, the Guyana Office for Investment (GO-Invest) and the private sector.

He said areas for industrial, commercial, residential and small business development have already been set aside, while his Ministry is aggressively pursuing the issue of regularising housing areas in Tabatinga and Culvert City, and allocating residential house lots in Lethem.

During this year, approximately $445M will be spent by the Ministry to upgrade the housing and water sectors in Region Nine.

Over 220 house lots in residential and commercial areas will be granted, and roads, drains, other structures and pure water distribution networks will be established in Tabatinga to benefit over 2000 people at a cost $220M.

This area will be developed under the Second Low Income Settlement Programme which is being implemented by the Government with assistance from the Inter-American Development Bank.

“I would say the plan is moving on…The Ministry of Tourism, GO-invest and Office of the President had met with a number of businessmen recently and a plan was worked out on moving forward,” Minister Ali said.

On July 23, President Bharrat Jagdeo met with several business persons from Lethem to commence the distribution of 17 plots of land within the designated Lethem commercial district. The project, which consists of a total of 65 lots, is a $1B investment that is expected to create 550 jobs.

The sum of $41M was also allocated as capital grant in the 2009 National Budget to the Lethem Power Company so that additional generators and transformers could be installed to boost electricity supply.

Lethem’s development as a hinterland settlement has been traditionally linked to cattle ranching and other forms of agricultural activity. The settlement was named after Governor Gordon Lethem and developed as the Rupununi headquarters of the colonial government during the period the country was a British colony. (GINA)