-remedial classes, skills training to be offered

FOOD for the Poor Guyana Inc. (FFP), on Thursday, officially handed over a spanking new building outfitted with modern amenities to the Disabled People’s Network (DPN). The building, which is located at Seafield, West Coast Berbice, Region 5 will be used as the DPN’s Resource Centre in the region.
Food for the Poor’s Chief Executive Officer, Kent Vincent, expressed gratitude to donors from the United States of America whose generosity ensured that the project became a reality. He explained that FFP was approached by the DPN over a year ago stating that there are an overwhelming number of persons with disabilities who wanted to access their services. At that time, the DPN’s facility could have only accommodated 15 persons.
The new centre, which has the capacity to accommodate over 100 persons, will also be used for remedial classes in Mathematics, English and Information Technology and training in masonry, carpentry, floral arrangements and clothes making. It will also facilitate other activities and is equipped with the requisite amenities.
Vincent related that the project took some time to start but thankfully the donors recognised the need and importance of the project and managed to get the necessary funding to commence construction of the building.

“We were approached by members of the Disabled People’s Network and it took some time to get the project going. The cost of the project is over US$71,000 (approximately $14.2 M), so we are really glad for the generosity of the people there in the US,” he said.
He added that the centre is the only one of its kind in the region and will provide the necessary training and services to significantly improve the livelihood of persons living with disabilities. “The centre will provide much more secure and improved learning environment, there will be easier access to the building and much greater comfort. Generally, the centre will improve the quality of life of the people who are involved and enhance their level of economic, social and culture inclusion for those with disabilities throughout Region Five. This is the only centre of this nature in the region to cater for people with disabilities for them to improve their circumstances and livelihood,” Vincent said.

Meanwhile, President of DPN, Mark Archibald, in his remarks, recalled that when the plot of land was acquired it seemed like an impossible task to get the building constructed, but when the FFP committed to making the project a reality they were relieved since the need for the facility was paramount.
Archibald explained that presently, over 200 persons are living with disabilities in Region Five and now that they have the space and facilities they can now touch and improve the livelihoods of much more people than they had envisioned. He assured that they will seek to add more resources to the facility and work to make the lives on not only disabled people better, but those around them as well. In this regard, he called on the relevant authorities to recognise this need.

“We are going to need more resources and the subvention that we are receiving would need to be improved because more people are going to be here and what we have or are receiving presently is no longer going to be enough,” he emphasised. Regional Chairman, Vickchand Ramphal, used the opportunity to commend the team for making the project possible, noting that DPN has been lobbying for a while to have a better Resource Centre. He made a commitment to continue collaborating with the organisation to make the lives of the disabled community better.

“Coming into the building I see the ramp [which] makes it very easy for persons with different forms of disability to enter the building and being the first in the region I must say, it’s an example of how we need to construct other public buildings. Presently we are working on the 2021 Budget proposal and in the circular we received from central government, they would have emphasised on the region when we are going to construct new buildings we must make provisions for persons with disabilities…I said this here is an example of how we should move forward. We will ensure on a regional level we will get that done knowing that we have a number of persons who are differently abled and we must cater for them in society. I am committed to working with the organisation to ensure we make a better place for persons with disability,” he said. The Regional Chairman also committed to providing assistance to aid in the cleaning of the compound.