…Henry confirmed as Minister of Education

PRESIDENT David Granger has announced that Minister of Social Cohesion, Dr. George Norton will, as of September 1, assume responsibility for Culture, Youth and Sport, allowing Minister of Education, Ms. Nicolette Henry to focus on improving the quality of and access to education countrywide.
In a statement, the Ministry of the Presidency (MoTP) said, Dr. Norton will remain Minister of Social Cohesion at the Ministry of the Presidency, with the new addition to his portfolio. However, his office will now be housed at the Department of Culture, Youth and Sport on Main Street. “This forms part of government’s efforts to ensure the effective delivery of critical public services,” the MOTP statement read.
In an invited comment, Dr. Norton told the MoTP that he is thankful for the confidence reposed in him by the President and looks forward to the new portfolio, even while he continues to focus on building social cohesion in Guyana. “I am very excited about this. There is no doubt about my interest in sports and I have been exposed to the various cultures across the country. In my role as Minister of Social Cohesion, I have been privileged to work with all the groups across the country and so I have an understanding of what is needed already. I have always been vocal about youth opportunities and…I certainly see the youth population as being the agents of change, who can make social cohesion a reality in Guyana and so I look forward to doing my best in both worlds,” he said.
Back in January President David Granger had reshuffled his Cabinet, removing Dr. Norton from the critical Public Health Ministry and replacing him with Volda Lawrence, while Amna Ally took over at the Ministry of Social Protection and Norton was sent to the Ministry of Social Cohesion.

Only recently, President Granger also announced the movement of Dawn Hasting-Williams from the Ministry of Communities to that of Minister of Public Affairs within the Ministry of the Presidency. “It was a question of my own judgment and I have to continuously evaluate the workload of every Ministry… It’s a continuous process to ensure that government works well and we need to ensure that we put our best effort where those efforts can have an impact on Government,” the Head of State had said in making the announcement. The President said Minister Hasting-Williams going into the Ministry of the Presidency is a continuation of a balancing process to strengthen the management of the Ministry.

In June, also, President Granger moved Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine from his post of Minister of Education to the Ministry of the Presidency as the Public Service Minister. As a result, Henry took up the post as Education Minister.
In 2016, the President had also initiated some changes to his Cabinet. Minister Catherine Hughes was appointed Minister of Public Telecommunications while the Ministry of Governance and the Protection of the National Patrimony were delinked. The latter was renamed the Ministry of Natural Resources and assigned to Minister Raphael Trotman. The functions of the Ministry of Governance were then added to the portfolio of Prime Minister, Mr. Moses Nagamootoo. In addition, Minister Simona Broomes was also shifted from the Ministry of Social Protection to the Ministry of Natural Resources, while Minister Keith Scott was moved to the Ministry of Social Protection from the Ministry of Communities and was tasked with responsibility for Labour. Minister Valerie Sharpe-Patterson was then given the nod for the post of Minister within the Ministry of Communities with responsibility for Housing.