THE Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has expressed an interest in providing assistance to villages within the Hinterland Regions that were recently hard hit by flashfloods.
Minister of Communities, Ronald Bulkan, made the disclosure in the National Assembly on Thursday in response to a series of questions posed by People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Member of Parliament, Collin Croal, on the measures being put in place to assist the communities in Regions Six, Seven, Eight and Nine that were severely affected by the floods that caused significant damages to properties and agricultural crops.
In addition to the interest being shown by the IDB, Minister Bulkan told the House that the Governments of Guyana and Brazil are currently “looking at the dimensions of the impact,” with focus on Region Nine and to some extent Region Eight.
The House was reminded by the Communities Minister that from the initial stage, the Government, through the Civil Defence Commission (CDC), and the Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs) focused its attention on providing much needed relief to the affected. Assistance was provided as earlier as May when the first set of reports of flooding were made. By July, the situation had worsened and Government had intensified its relief effort.
In the Rupununi a number of villages were severely affected due to floods which were linked to rising water levels at main rivers within the region, as well as Takutu and Ireng Rivers on the border with Guyana and Brazil.
The villages of Kaibarupai, Sand Hill, Chenapou, Waipa and surrounding areas in Potaro-Siparuni (Region Eight), were also affected as a result of the overtopping of several rivers, including the Ireng River.
Over in Region Five, heavy showers had caused flooding in Bush Lot, Trafalgar, Bath Settlement, Kingelly, Rosignol and Tempie Villages, while in Region Six the Numbers 47, 51, 52 and 54 Villages on the Corentyne Coast, along with Black Bush Polder, as areas mostly affected by the floodwaters. Residents in Middle Mazaruni in Region Seven were among those also affected.
Minister Bulkan said in response to the situation, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, led a team to Region Eight, while he accompanied the Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo, along with another team to Region Nine to bring relief to the affected.
Orinduik in Region Eight, a Forward Operations Centre was set up. “Regional Disaster Committees in the Regions were mobilised and emergency centers,” Minister Bulkan pointed out, while noting that two shelters were set up in Lethem to accommodate in excess of 40 households who were also in need food and other necessities.
Currently, the RDCs are assessing the impact, Minister Bulkan told the National Assembly.
“The RDCs, in particularly in the hinterland regions, are still compiling and doing their assessment reports, where they are receiving reports from the outlining areas and outlining villages, to determine the extent of the damages,” he explained. Though compensation is not normally provided by the State in these occurrences, the Communities Minister said that the State is open to consider it.
“Compensation is not normally provided but following a determination of the extent of the damages the State is prepared to look at it, but those figures are not currently available,” he explained.
However, the Agriculture Ministry will be providing assistance to farmers through the provision of planting materials and feeds.
