MINISTER of Public Works Juan Edghill on Thursday announced that the government is in the process of “importing” seven spanking new aircrafts and constructing two new airstrips, all in the interest of raising the standards of the local airline industry.

He made the foregoing announcement while delivering the feature address at the Ogle Airport Inc. (OAI)’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), saying that he’s already taken the proposal for both projects to Cabinet, and has every confidence that they will be approved.
He was also keen to note that not only will the new airstrips be established, but that the necessary funding will also be directed towards the maintenance and development of all the country’s airstrips.

And, still on the subject of airstrips, Minister Edghill seized the opportunity to report that in keeping with a promise made by the government to create and provide more jobs for Guyanese, his ministry will be seeking to hire persons living in the hinterland to be a part of the teams that will be tasked with developing and maintaining the airstrips within their respective communities.

Also on the cards, he said, are plans for the expansion and development of at least seven sectors, these being agriculture, mining, forestry, manufacturing, tourism, petroleum and ICT.

During a break of sorts in the meeting, which was held in the OAI’s Departure Lounge, Minister Edghill made the point that given the trajectory Guyana is on, it is imperative that the airline industry adjust and be prepared to serve the people of Guyana.
“We are moving to an area where Guyanese must travel their country, while travelling the world,” he said, and seeing that practically all the industry’s stakeholders were under the same roof that day, he used the opportunity to encourage airline operators in particular to engage with the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), in the interest of forming a strategic alliance in the furtherance of facilitating international travel arrangements.

He also reminded those members of the Aircraft Owners’ Association of Guyana Inc. (AOAG) present that while they continue to develop niches in the airline industry, that they must also stand ready to promote cooperation among themselves, by seeking to ensure that all operators within the industry are on the same page.
“Under my tenure as minister,” he said, “one of the things I will be seeking to do is to coordinate and ensure an upward thrust of Guyana’s Airline Industry,” Minister Edghill said.
OAI Chairman Mr. Michael Correia congratulated Minister Edghill on being elected to serve as Minister of Public Works, and said he looks forward to collaborating with him on the development of the aviation sector.

Also present at the meeting were GCAA Director-General, Colonel (ret’d) Egbert Field, and Air Transport Management Director, Mr. Saheed Sulaman among other GCAA staffers.