SEBAI, a riverine village in the Matarkai sub-district of Region One (Barima-Waini), is the latest beneficiary of a boat and engine to aid in medical emergencies within the village.
The vessel was handed over to the village last Thursday by Minister of State Dawn Hastings-Williams during a recent outreach to Matarkai. It will be used to transport patients, especially pregnant mothers, to the Port Kaituma Hospital, which is located some 30 minutes up the Port Kaituma River.

Minister Hastings-Williams, who was accompanied by a team of medical personnel from within the region, spoke to the residents on the importance of having access to proper medical services. She noted that the initiative was part of the Coalition government’s strategy to improve health services delivery in hinterland communities. “It doesn’t matter if you live at the head of a creek; it doesn’t matter if you live at the foot of a mountain, you are all Guyanese, and you need proper health services,” the minister stated.

The hand-over was in keeping with a promise made to the village last year when they requested a boat and engine to facilitate the transportation of patients to health facilities. The village already has a boat and engine providing services to students in the community. The minister also handed over sports gear to Sebai. Over the last three years, villages, including Port Kaituma, Manawarin, Assakata, Waikrebi, and Kwebanna in Region One have also received boats and engines for medical purposes. Water ambulances were also provided to villages in Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) among others. Additionally, last week, Santa Mission, an Indigenous village in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) received a boat and engine valued $2.9M under the Ministry of Public Health’s Maternal and Child Health project. Other communities in Regions Four( Demerara-Mahaica) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) also benefited from transportation under this project. (DPI)