RESIDENTS of North Rupununi are making special effort to protect themselves from the contraction of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and, through the radio, are being informed on the specific ways they can do so.

Although North Rupununi is located far away from Guyana’s capital and is sparsely populated, councillor of Annai Central and former Toshao, Michael Williams, said that persons in the Region are still having minor challenges adhering to ‘social distancing’.

Annai Central has porous borders compared to other villages and persons can access the village from any angle, preventing authorities from enacting a precautionary village shutdown.

Williams told the newspaper on Sunday that the only option was to educate and the radio had been serving this important purpose.

He works along with the North Rupununi District Development Board (NRDDB) and Annai’s Radio Paiwomak where he broadcasts both in English and Makushi.

“Everything is coming through the radio to educate our people on the dos and the don’ts. Every 15 minutes we have something about this virus on the radio,” he told this newspaper.

About 23 villages have access to the reach of the radio station. Meanwhile, authorities in North Rupununi are all a part of a Whatsapp group which they use to discuss issues and how they can collaborate for intervention.

It includes village leaders, Sub-District and Development Officers, medical workers, teachers, government officers and Radio Paiwomak staff.

“So, anything funny or anything at all is brought to our attention through the Whatsapp group and we try to see how we can continue educating our people,” Williams said.

He noted that there is a specific hotline for Region 9 which villagers can utilise; villagers are no longer hosting birthday parties; schools have long been closed and shops are taking strict measures to prevent the virus.

Annai authorities have also spoken to bus drivers and passengers who travel from Annai to Lethem urging them not to make unnecessary trips.

Though far away from the capital, there have been concerns in the Region as it lies close to the Brazil border where there are over 3,904 confirmed Covid-19 cases and a death toll of 111 as of March 28, 2020.

Last week, Brazilian authorities enforced a gazetted order to close the border crossing linking Guyana with the neighbouring country.

While Annai Central leaders cannot prevent persons from travelling through the village, Surama, just nearby, has the opposite opportunity and acted on it.

On Sunday, a resident from the area, Kenneth Butler, posted photos of a gate now constructed at the village’s entrance stating: “Yesterday afternoon Surama village put up their gates to stop non-villagers access and to control who and the number of persons coming and going out and Into the village.”

The move was applauded by well over 100 persons on social media. Butler had also noted, in an earlier post, that the local bus service closed on March 26, 2020, until further notice “for the safety of our families and the community”.

Meanwhile, over at Fairview, Medevac personal have met with villagers twice to educate them on proper handwashing techniques and how they can best safeguard their immune systems from the virus.

Headmaster at Fairview Primary, Quado Vancooten, said that the village has blocked its back entrance but a secret road known only to villagers remains open for their access.

He said that most persons from the two main sources of employment in the village — Iwokrama River Lodge and Research Centre and McVantage lumber company —- have returned home to the village.

No tourists have been visiting and persons have not been gathering in large numbers.

Vancooten is especially pleased that the government supplied Wi-Fi placed in strategic locations has been enabling villages to access the internet and research on the latest local and international update on the virus.

“Because of the e-gov Wi-Fi, many persons are trying to access information and they’re sharing it. That’s something good coming out of this. Persons are looking up, they’re searching to see what’s the latest information. Everybody is going on the net once they have a phone or a tablet. Persons are eager to go to see what’s happening,” he said.

Observing the need for re-education on sanitary habits, Williams believes that the virus is a wakeup call on the fact that Guyanese, and humans in general, must not forget the right habit they would have learnt during their earlier days in school.

“It’s a matter of hygiene practices that we used to do before,” he pointed out. “It’s a matter of stepping back because it was almost forgotten…it’s just going back to the basis of a healthier lifestyle.”