–as works progress on farm-to-market roads at Numbers 52, 58
–transformational Molsen-El Dorado road for Guyana, Suriname link also taking shape

NEW and existing farmers in Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) will soon have access to over 50,000 acres of land as work progresses on the new asphaltic farm-to-market roads at Numbers 52 and 58 Villages.

The work done so far was inspected by a team of officials led by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh on Saturday.

Dr. Singh, who was accompanied by Chairman of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) of Region Six, David Armogan; Regional Vice-Chairman of the RDC, Zamal Hussain; and Regional Executive Officer of Region Six, Narindra Persaud observed the construction activities, and assessed the performance of the contractors.

Upon completion of his inspection, Dr. Singh was pleased with the pace of work and said that both projects are on course to completion by January and February, as stipulated by the respective contracts.
Dr. Singh said that both projects are of significant importance to the overall infrastructural development of Guyana, and mark just the beginning of the works in the pipeline.

“At both Number 52 and Number 58 Villages, we are constructing new roads from the Corentyne Highway all the way to Canje Creek… Those roads, I am told, will open up 50,000 acres of new farm lands,” Dr. Singh said, adding:

“Once that access is available to the new lands, we anticipate farmers will take up those lands, and you will have a significant expansion in cultivation, and significant increase in agriculture produce. And that is just a couple examples on the Corentyne Coast.  We are doing the same elsewhere across Guyana.”

The contract for the Number 58 Village farm-to-market road was awarded to GuyAmerica Construction Company, to the tune of $640 million, while the road at Number 52 Village, which was awarded to Associated Construction, costs $240 million.

Those projects, along with the Molsen-El Dorado Road, which was awarded to Shaffeeullah Sawmills for $151 million, are the largest road projects being executed in the region at this time.
Dr. Singh also visited the Molsen-El Dorado Road, where he observed that work is also moving apace.

This new infrastructure, which is being constructed with crusher run, spans 2.5 kilometers, and will end at the point where the new bridge across the Corentyne River, connecting Guyana and Suriname, will land.
Like the Numbers 52 and 58 road projects, this project, Dr. Singh said, in the first instance, will serve the needs of residents and the agriculture community, but it has more far-reaching benefits.
“This road is intended to serve multiple purposes, and what this road is going to do in the immediate instance when completed is improve access to the farmlands, and it is going to improve access to the people who live along this alignment.

“But beyond that into the medium and long term, this road is an extremely important artery that will lead to the Corentyne River Bridge,” Dr. Singh said, adding:
“This is one of the major transformational projects… The Corentyne River Bridge that links Guyana to Suriname, and I may go further to say, it’s part of a broader hemispheric vision, because we are speaking of not only bridging the Corentyne River, but we are speaking about building the road from Linden to Lethem.

“And you can imagine how significant that development is going to be, when persons can literally be able to travel from French Guiana and Suriname all the way to Brazil, via Guyana, and what that is going to mean for the economic activities.”

Dr. Singh further said that the various projects represent what he described as “pieces of a single comprehensive puzzle, or a single integrated picture.”
Those pieces, he said, have been progressively put into place over a period of time, and they include the Berbice Bridge, the East Bank Highway, and the New Demerara Bridge, which is expected to be built soon.

Those projects are part of a larger, comprehensive plan drafted by the current administration to improve Guyana’s connectivity with its neighbours, not just for the purpose of connectivity, but also for economic benefits.