THE NEGATIVE press and publicity which the New Opportunity Corps (NOC) has been attracting, both over the years and more recently, has not escaped the attention of the United States Government.
While signing a Letter of Agreement with Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ms Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, earlier this week, US Ambassador Brent Hardt spoke of plans to make the NOC a fitter place for rehabilitation and correction. He also spoke to the issue of the prisons.
The Letter of Agreement, signed between the two countries officials, is valued at US$850,000 and is geared at strengthening of the security sector and its agencies. According to Ambassador Hardt, the US is looking to provide direct support to the NOC and Prisons.
Ambassador Hardt said that part of the funding would be going towards strengthening the correctional services with a particular focus on management and rehabilitation of the juvenile detainees within the system.
He said that the US is working together with the Government of Guyana and the focus would be on sharing and implementing international best practices designed to prevent gang recruiting in prisons and reduce the instances of repeat juvenile offenders.
The programme will entail pointers from experts in the field of correctional management, and Ambassador Hardt said an exchange was already done, wherein persons from the local correctional facilities had visited correctional facilities in the United States.
Ambassador Hardt explained that the aim of the programme is to ensure that there is best practices and prevention of gang formation within the walls of local correctional facilities, hence both countries would be engaged in training and monitoring sessions.
Meanwhile, Foreign Affairs Minister, Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, admitted that there have been many challenges with respect to the NOC. She said that the Government of Guyana is also looking to the United States for help in acquiring the capabilities to manage the facility.
She, however, pointed out that one of the issues facing the facility is the many challenges, which are different today as compared to when the facility was first established, and the issues it was designed to deal with are also now different.
She admitted that the Government has to improve on the work it has been doing at the facility, but she said works are already afoot to ensure that the facility is set on the right course, and this has been made possible with the help of the US and other agencies.
(By Leroy Smith)
