AS promised recently by the Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee, the installation of close circuit television (CCTV) cameras in the city is gaining momentum.
In June this year, the government began installing cameras in the city in keeping with its plan to boost intelligence gathering to combat and deter crime. Cameras have already been installed at Homestretch and Mandela Avenues, D’urban Street and Mandela Avenue, Rahaman’s Turn, Houston and several other traffic lights on Mandela Avenue, at the junction of Sheriff Street and Rupert Craig Highway and  also at other major intersections in central Georgetown.
In 2005 the government had promised to introduce the CCTV cameras in the fight against crime, and five years later it has become a reality. This project is expected to be completed by August 2011.
The headquarters for the monitoring and storage of the footage gathered will be situated in the building of the National Intelligence Centre. The tower and transmission lines will connect the headquarters to other monitoring stations as well, so that the footage can be easily accessible in the prevention of a crime or prosecution. For Georgetown, the cameras would extend up to a certain part of the East Coast of Demerara as well as the East Bank of Demerara.
The introduction of CCTV cameras has been in the pipeline since 2008, when government announced that it is offering duty- free concessions to the private sector for the cameras, and said it will play a vital role in ensuring that they are implemented in public areas.
Meanwhile, the business community said they are happy that the cameras are being installed since it will help in capturing persons bent on robbing the stores. Government had allocated GY$15M in the 2011 National Budget to purchase the equipment and recently passed a supplementary provision of GY$11M for same.