IN a small but significant gathering yesterday at Onverwagt in Region Five, West Coast Berbice, His Excellency President Donald Ramotar, as head of the Government of Guyana (GoG), officially commissioned the Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration, a facility for homeless persons which has received extensive funding from the Government of Venezuela, and has been named in honour of the late Venezuelan leader, President Hugo Chavez.

President Donald Ramotar addresses the modest gathering before declaring open the Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration at Onverwagt

Attending the ceremony was Venezuelan Ambassador to Guyana, Her Excellency Reina Margarita Arratia Diaz, and other officials from both Venezuela and Guyana.
Addressing the gathering, President Ramotar said the occasion signifies another dimension of Guyana/Venezuela relationship, and that the facility will be a living memory of the late Hugo Chavez, who has helped to finance the project.
The commissioning of the facility, he continued, also demonstrates that the late President Chavez was not only concerned about the poor and disadvantaged in his country, but demonstrated his own regional and international spirit by giving.
President Ramotar added that the project also reflects the passion that President Hugo Chavez had for humanity.
Other countries in the region and further afield, he said, have also benefited from the true sense of fighting to lift humanity which was demonstrated by the late President Hugo Chavez. The moves and steps taken by President Chavez were very bold and courageous ones, and were influenced by the needs of people in Latin America and the Caribbean.
President Ramotar commended President Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s new leader, for pursuing the legacy of the late leader President Chavez, which he said would benefit the Caribbean and Latin America.
The Guyanese leader said the realization of the project is an indication of the togetherness of the two countries, while he pointed to the level of support that Guyana has received from Venezuela.
He pointed to the PetroCaribe, which has allowed Guyana to meet its petroleum needs and expand its trading, and to Guyana’s supply of rice to Venezuela, which is an innovated mechanism that has served both countries well. He said that with those and many other unmentioned areas of assistance from Venezuela, it could only be fitting for the homeless centre to be named after such a great leader as the late President Hugo Chavez.
President Ramotar reaffirmed his Government’s intention to continue working with the Government and people of Venezuela, especially on the education front, as Guyana seeks to take its education level even higher while exploring other areas of mutual benefit.
Minister of Human Services and Social Security, Ms Jennifer Webster, said it has been a pleasure for the Government of Guyana to decide to name the facility in honour of an astute and revolutionary stateman like the late Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez.
She said commissioning of the Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration is a tangible demonstration of the good relationship existing between Guyana and Venezuela, and she expressed hope that the facility would further enhance the relationship, especially since it became a reality only five months after the death of the Venezuelan leader.
Minister Webster extended much appreciation to the Government and people of Venezuela for the part they played in the project.
The minister reminded that the proposal for the Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration was conceived by the Governments of Guyana and Venezuela as a policy initiative since the Government of Guyana sought to aggressively address the issues of the homeless within our society.
As such, the Government of Guyana sought the assistance of the Government of Venezuela, which was at the time being led by the late President Hugo Chavez, to procure the resources to execute the project, and that Government willingly made available US$200M for the project, while the Government of Guyana pumped another US$50M into the project.
The move by then Venezuelan President Chavez was, at the time, a demonstration of his love for humanity, which expressed itself in providing hope for the disadvantaged and homeless people within the society, Minister Webster added.
Construction of the Hugo Chavez Centre for Rehabilitation and Reintegration started in January of 2010, and experienced several delays, some of which resulted in the ministry releasing at least one contractor and hiring another.
The facility would accommodate one hundred and eighty persons of both sexes, and also has land which would be used for agricultural purposes, as the Government aims to transform the lives of the people who would reside at the centre, while seeking to have them become disciplined individuals.
Among those who played meaningful roles in ensuring that yesterday’s commissioning was held were workers from the Ministries of Finance, Human Services and Public Works.
Venezuelan Ambassador to Guyana, Her Excellency Reina Margarita Arratia Diaz, brought greetings on behalf of the President and Foreign Affairs Minister of Venezuela and its people.
Speaking through an interpreter, the ambassador said the day was a special one, since it marked the realization of a commitment which was signed years ago, hence the opening of the centre.
Her Excellency Reina Margarita Arratia Diaz noted that facilities such as the one commissioned yesterday are put in place to look after the disadvantaged people. She added that such entities are usually established to provide medical, physical and other services to persons notwithstanding their access to food, education and skills, to allow for reintegration of the homeless into their families and the society.
These facilities also help to improve the quality of life of citizens, the ambassador added.
According to the diplomat, the social policies of the late President Hugo Chavez produced favourable results. She pointed out that when the late president decided to fund the Guyana project, it was because of his compassion and commitment to helping the most disadvantaged people and victims of adversities.
Guyana’s decision to name the facility after Mr. Chavez, the ambassador asserted, is of great significance, since it pays tribute to a man who gave his all, including his life, to provide better opportunities for the people of Latin America.
She added that those things have all been possible through the recovery of the country’s oil industry, which has also allowed for the fair and equitable distribution of natural resources which have been invested in social programmes such as health, education, security, food security and other areas.
The end result was a better quality of life for those who have been excluded in the past, and at the same time, it has reflected the momentum of the solidarity in partnership and friendship with countries like Guyana.
Ambassador Reina Margarita Arratia Diaz ended her speech expressing hope that the facility would fulfill its objective and that men and women would benefit from the centre and be reintegrated into the Guyanese society.
Following the commissioning, President Ramotar and the Venezuelan ambassador, along with officials which including the First Lady, were given a tour of the facility by Public Works Ministry advisor Walter Willis.
The facility is equipped with a mess hall, house mother’s and doctor’s quarters, separate dormitories for women and men, an office, reception area and training rooms.
By the end of this month, the ministry will begin moving persons into the facility, which is properly fenced and secure.
There are also surveillance cameras on the premises.