Dear Editor
I CONSIDER it my duty to inform the public of the remarkable achievements of Essequibo Islands / West Demerara for the year 2017 and therefore humbly request a space in your newsletter column to do same.

Before I begin, permit me to state that the Regional Democratic Council through the regional administration, which is headed by Mr. Denis Jaikaran, mission is to provide for the coordination and utilisation of human and material resources within the region, to promote quality services and sustainable physical and institutional infrastructures and to enhance orderly development in the political, social, economic and cultural life of the people in pursuit of improved living conditions for the residents of the region.
The regional administration addresses its mission through five programmes, namely: Administration and Finance, Agriculture, Public Infrastructure, Education Delivery and Public Health Services.

Now for the remarkable achievements:
PROGRAMME One – ADMIN AND FINANCE – Space was for years a problem and today I can comfortably boast of the extension of the administration building, which was a signature project on our end. The staff members are excited for their comfort was put as a priority.
The programme also saw the influx of new staff members, which will now allow for a better result to be delivered since the programme was heavily under-staffed. We also purchased office resources to bring further comfort to all staff members.

Notwithstanding the provision of all resources to our staff, we continue to lift the morals and general attitude of all members of staff, for we believe firmly that your attitude determines your altitude. The administration has been celebrating and will continue to respect and observe all national and religious holidays. Our administration is blessed to have hard-working and committed workers who have from time to time gone beyond the call of duty to ensure that the public is served properly and for that I must commend them all and wish them nothing but continuous blessings for a rewarding 2018.

PROGRAMME Two – AGRICULTURE – Agriculture can be considered as the most important sector within the regional administration of Essequibo Islands / West Demerara and this is because of the heavy farming of various crops by the majority of residents. The regional administration, in keeping with government’s policy to provide the good life to all, must therefore give the necessary attention to agriculture, as it so deserves.

It gives me great pleasure to say that full attention was placed in this programme for 2017 where capital and current projects were executed much to the benefit of farmers and by extension the entire region. Under capital spending, construction of a revetment at Goed Intent village, construction of RC Control Structures at Schoonord, Middle Walk and construction of RC Control Structures at Zeelugt Middle Walk, construction of RC Control Structures at Endeavour, Leguan, rehabilitation of the Maria Johanna river sluice at Wakenaam and purchase of HPDE tubes were done much to the satisfaction of all beneficiaries.

With reference to excavation of canals, the following trenches were done – the Aliki drainage trench, Versailles, Middle Walk, Parika West Irrigation, B-Line Tail Well to Conservancy, Bonasika drainage trench, A-Line Main Drain, Centre Line Main Drain, Ruby Main Drain, Lanaballi Drainage trench etc.

A number of repair works were also done to the Philadelphia River Sluice, Maripa River Sluice and Salem River Sluice. Work was also done on bridges at Parika Backdam and Maripa. The department also repaired revetments at Georga Escape Channel and Maria’s Lodge. Agriculture has done well in 2017 and in 2018 we will do far better.

PROGRAMME Three – PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE — This programme has successfully completed 100% of work from voted provisions in 2017 for bridges. Heavy-duty bridges were constructed at Richmond Hill, Leguan, Leonora New Housing Scheme and Meten-Meer-Zorg. The areas mentioned above are now enjoying uninterrupted services from not only heavy-duty machines that clean trenches and canals, but also easy forms of transportation for the construction of homes among many other benefits.

Voted provisions from the 2017 budget for roads also saw a 100% completion as the current status. Asphaltic concrete roads were constructed at Unity Street, Mandir Street, Ocean View, Uitvlugt and Jessamy Street. It was indeed a delight on our part to receive commendations from residents for the work done in their areas. I must mention the construction of a Special Needs School at La Parfaite Harmony, which is another signature project in Essequibo Islands / West Demerara and an Early Childhood Day Care Centre at Leonora. The above projects were channelled through the region and by virtue of us being direct beneficiaries, oversight was a must. The new state-of-the art Maternity Ward at the Leonora Diagnostic Centre falls under the same category.

PROGRAMME Four – EDUCATION DELIVERY – Realising a better education sector in 2018 has become easier since in 2017, there were several notable infrastructural improvements which include a new state-of-the art education building which can now house all staff members comfortably, a cold storage unit to store juices and biscuits for our pupils, installation of a generator to prevent interrupted power supply, extension of La Parfaite Harmony Nursery, Anna Catherina Nursery, Belle West Primary, Tuschen Primary, Essequibo Islands Secondary, Windsor Forest Primary etc and new teachers’ quarters at Hogg Island and Bonasika, etc.

In addition, remarkable improvements were seen in academics. More pupils gained passes to senior secondary schools and statistics also showed that there were widespread increases in the performance at CSEC with more students matriculating and a significant reduction in the dropout rate.

Further, schools are enjoying free internet access where accessibility to information is way easier and the thirst for knowledge has become more exciting. In keeping with the government’s policy of promoting a green economy, secondary schools were equipped with solar panels and traditional bulbs were replaced with LED bulbs. The work of the education department must be a continuous one, mainly because as the world experiences various changes we must equally adapt.

PROGRAMME Five – PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES – Despite the challenges facing the health sector in Essequibo Islands / West Demerara, the progress made in 2017 with reference to infrastructure is notably commendable. We saw the construction of a sanitary block at the Vergenoegen Health Centre, Sand Hill Heath Centre and Greenwich Park Health Centre. Furnaces were constructed at the Morashee Health Centre, Caria Caria Health Centre, Viva La Force Health Centre, Upper Bonasika Health Centre and the Hogg Island Health Centre.
To facilitate the growing demands for health services and decentralisation of services, extensions to existing buildings occurred at the Upper Bonasika Health Centre, the Leonora Diagnostic Centre (dental, X-Ray, Emergency and Outpatients), the Morashee Health Centre, Lanaballi Health Centre and Den Amstel Health Centre. An incinerator was also constructed at the Leonora Diagnostic Centre.

Additionally, a number of furniture and equipment were purchased to improve the services delivered to patients and these include an Anaesthesia Ventilator, Fluoroscopy, portable X-Ray unit, Autoclave/ Steriliser, an Orthopaedic Operating Bed, Recovery Room Bed, Capnogram, Probes for laser machine, Haematology Analyser, Micro Heatocrit Centrifuge, Examination lights, Laryngoscope, Otoscope, Defribillators, Fetal dropplers, incubators etc.
Staffing at the various health centres and hospitals has improved and services are being delivered better than before. Of course, there is still room for lots of improvements and given the continuous training programmes and workshops, I am confident that we will reach perfection.

In conclusion, the road may be long and steep, but I believe together we will achieve our objective once we stay focused. The Essequibo Islands / West Demerara regional administration will continue to improve, so as to deliver the best to our people and with the support of central government we will do it. The year 2018, I predict, will be a better year and our region will definitely improve. I wish all a productive and blessed 2018 as we thank 2017 for the many successful accomplishments.
Regards
Ganesh Mahipaul