TWENTY West Berbice secondary school students, last week, received certificates from the  Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Ministry of Health (MOH), confirming their successful completion of a training programme on biological control of mosquitoes.
“Our hope is that this exposure will motivate at least some of you to pursue a career in entomology (the scientific study of insects) or a related career when you will have completed your studies,” Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Shamdeo Persaud told those from Bush Lot Secondary School (BLSS) at the presentations.
The course was conducted by Guyana Environmental Capacity Development Project (GENCAPD), a gold mining assistance Canadian scheme with a sub-component for  control of vector borne diseases, at the BLSS Science Laboratory.
Persaud exhorted the recipients to spread their newly acquired knowledge within their community and, by doing so, assist in eliminating mosquito pests and sources of serious illnesses, such as dengue and yellow fevers, filaria and malaria, among  others.
The Certificate in Health Community Participation is for successfully completing the training sponsored by CIDA, the MOH and the Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, a university in Peru.
The signatories to it are Persaud and Professor Palmira Ventosila of Universidad Peruana.
Others present at the ceremony were Mr. K. Krishnalall, Chief Inspector Vector Control Services, Ministry of Health; Mr. Ignatius Merai, Chief Environmental Health Officer, Region Five (Mahaica/Berbice) and staffers, Mr. Sylvan Archibald and Mr. Dennis Klass; GENCAP Intern Nurse, Ms. Doniellle Douglas; Canadian volunteer, Ms. Elizabeth Pontous; Head of the Science Department of BLSS, Mr. Seepersaud Samaroo; Science teacher, Mr. Emamdeen Sattaur and Dr. Ventosila, on attachment to GENCAPD.
Ventosila had been the main resource person for the training, which comprised  classroom work and visits to 107 homes in Bush Lot and the breeding and use of a micro-organism, named BTI, for biological control of mosquitoes.
GENCAPD  staffers said that the BTI aspect was mainly intended for control of   vector borne diseases, such as dengue and malaria in hinterland gold and diamond mining areas.
“The emphasis is on vector control in the hinterland but a programme was identified for the coastal village of Bush Lot, as an additional component because mosquitoes on the coast are known to be vectors of serious illnesses, such as dengue fever and filarial, among others,” one of them said.