THIS year so far has seen a plethora of investments in Guyana, from the construction of new hotels to new players entering the agricultural sector and foreign investors setting up shop here to the building of state-of-the-art shopping centres.
These investments are all contributing to the changing of the physical as well as business landscapes in Guyana, as the country is set to grow exponentially in the years ahead, fuelled by revenues from oil. But aside from the private sector-driven business deals that entail major construction works, the government is also forging ahead with public works geared at enhancing the lives of citizens and to give communities throughout Guyana a more modern look.
La Parfaite Harmonie immediately comes to mind. Through funding from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), this quiet West Bank Demerara community is set to be transformed through key infrastructural projects to the tune of $890 million under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme.

The works to be completed, namely enhancement of roads, pavements, street lights and drainage and irrigation, point to efforts that stretch beyond the usual community enhancement to more of improving the well-being of residents there, both in the short and long term.
This is particularly so because these infrastructural works will create hundreds of jobs in the construction phase of the projects outlined and when completed are likely to see significant enhancement in drainage and irrigation, as well as greater safety and security for residents in La Parfaite Harmonie.
Undoubtedly this could be counted as progressive steps by government, channelled towards the realisation of the name of community, which is French in origin and when translated into English, means ‘The Perfect Harmony.’ It cannot be more f an apt description since in addition to the enhancement of roads, installation of street lights and improvement in drainage and irrigation, 25 families are set to benefit from core-home support and 118 others from home-improvement subsidies.

These investments indicate that the government is attuned to the needs of the people at the grassroots level and the inclusion of Victoria, a predominantly African community under the Adequate Housing and Urban Accessibility Programme, stands as testimony to the fact that the Dr Irfaan Ali-led administration is forging ahead with development without discrimination, regardless of ethnicity and political affiliation. It cannot be more evident since aside from Victoria, less than a week ago before the announcement of the projects at La Parfaite Harmonie, it was disclosed that Lust-in-Rust, a mixed community, also in Region Three, is set to benefit from a new water well to the tune of $115.
In addition to the mentioned communities, street lights installation, drainage and irrigation works and roads projects are being executed in communities throughout the country.

With regard to roads in particular, in Budget 2021 accommodation has been made to reduce issues such as overcrowded and damaged roads and limited exit and entry points, of which $23.7 billion was allocated for roads and $1.9 billion for bridges.
Notably, the allocation for roads will also see upgrades to roads in the hinterland as the government seeks to ensure that this area becomes developed to benefit the people there and give them access to opportunities that any other areas of the country experience.
Housing and Water Minister Collin Croal sums up the government’s vision well with regard to investment in infrastructural development during a community outreach on Wednesday when he said the following: “We operate as one government, whatever we are doing is done in conjunction with the regional plans, and this is to ensure maximum output in the programme and policies which we implement to improve the lives of all residents.”