GOVERNMENT is moving to empower the administrative regions and part of it will include possible name-changes, as well as the installation of flags and emblems to ensure their respective identities, Communities Minister, Ronald Bulkan said.This process, which will begin next year, will see widespread consultations under the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs), targeting key stakeholders.

“When our regions were created in the 1980s, the names given or assigned to regions weren’t meant to be permanent and one of the things we have found is that in many cases the majority of our regions are not referred to by their names but were referred to by numbers,” Bulkan said.

He continued: “It is felt a key reason for this is the fact that many of the names are too long and in some cases too cumbersome, hence, it is easier to identify the regions by numbers.”

According to him, residents cannot have a bond with a region when it is referred to by a number as this is counterproductive to regional awareness, as well as their and pride.

“So the opportunity will be afforded to persons within each region to decide if the names they currently have for their regions are the ones they want to retain or if they would like to have a new name,” the minister said.

It was noted that if a poll is carried out, there would be a high probability that many persons are not aware of the official names for the various regions.

Minister Bulkan stressed that even though this new development will come on stream, Government will not interfere with the role of the regional administrations.

“The administration has stated its commitment to rebuilding both local democracy and the system of Local Government. We have said that in relation to governance that there are three strata or layers of governance: Central, Regional and Local. For there to be effective governance, each of these pillars has to be functioning for there to be proper national administration,” Bulkan explained.

In Budget 2017, total regional allocations increased by $2B, but in Regions Two, Six and 10, there were marginal decreases in capital allocations.

“We are aware that there have been some challenges in the implementation and the execution of the 2016 budgetary allocation and it is our fervent hope that we can learn from those lessons. Given that the budget will be approved prior to the start of the fiscal year, it means that we have a full 12-month to guarantee a smooth, efficient and complete execution of all of our projects,” the minister said.

And on this note, he appealed for a harmonious and not an adversarial relationship between political elements of the various councils.

“It is not the desire of this administration to have a situation where the administrative component of our council is given prominence at the expense of the political element of the council which is the real authority. These are democratically-elected institutions and councils and we are committed to respecting the democratic will of the people and to allow for the exercise of the authority where it properly resides which is in the political elements,” Minister Bulkan said.

Region Seven Chairman, Gordon Bradford thanked the Government for the sums allocated to the region and said it would allow for residents to benefit from improved services.

The region is hoping to have a full-fledged hospital in the near future, and will be building living quarters for teachers and health care providers.

For Region 10 Chairman, Renis Morian, significant attention will be given to infrastructural projects.

The first phase of the Linden-Lethem Road will aid in job creation since Lindeners will be given first preference in employment opportunities.
Morian also said that the region will be encouraging aircraft owners to invest in a regional airstrip and will also seek to employ retired Math teachers to boost performance in this subject area.

Meanwhile, Chairman for Region Nine, Bryan Allicock said the tender system must be activated as early as possible since inclement weather has been affecting timely completion of infrastructural projects.

He also called for more investment into Guyana’s largest region.