DEVANAND Sawh comes from a long line of family members with diverse backgrounds in mechanical engineers, fabrication and businessmen within the rice industries that occasionally import machinery and spare parts into Guyana.

Having a large family comes a great deal of responsibility and Sawh’s grandfather took that seriously. He was the mechanical and civil engineer who worked on almost all of the rice mills and sawmills on the Berbice Coast at the time, and he also found the time to dabble in rice farming. Devanand also claimed that his father, brother and himself pursued mechanical and civil engineering careers. After a while, his brother eventually migrated to New York and he was left with managing the company.

After leaving secondary school, Devanand recalled his father being involved in a tragic accident, and as such, life wasn’t “smooth” financially. For some time, he knew what it felt like to not have a sense of stability and understood the hardships of life as a young man. Having experienced that personally, Sawh welcomes young people from the neighbourhood who wish to train in his workshop as mechanics, and he also pays them while they are learning. “It’s their choice if they wish to stay and work for me or move on,” but Devanand takes pride in knowing that he is positively contributing to someone’s life.

While Sawh has praised the people of his community and the cooperation they have shown, he is also requesting that they improve the cleanliness of their community by disposing of their garbage properly. “It may not happen overnight, but it is something that we can all work on changing.” “These are modern times that we are living in and we all have to break out of the culture of dumping garbage anywhere and everywhere,” said Devanand. He expressed hope that the people refrain from throwing their garbage on the street corners or in the trenches and canals. “Like all communities, we may have our own situations at times, but we are united as a people.”

He also encourages young people in Guyana and his community to seize the opportunities that come their way and make the most of them. “As human beings, we can see clearly how we can help another person, and I shouldn’t want that person to go through what I did knowing that I could help.” He is also challenging his fellow business colleagues to do similar acts in their neighbourhoods so that the young people can benefit.

According to Sawh, Guyana is doing excellently in the agricultural sector compared to some previous years. He applauded the government of Guyana for its investment in this field, especially in Region Six. “The investment that the government has made in this sector is huge, especially in this region.” We are getting a lot of benefits and encouragement to expand, even though we may not have enough land space. “I am not exaggerating here, but the future is looking very bright for Guyanese and it’s not just because of the oil.”

For the brief moment that this publication spent at his residence, Devanand appeared to be one of the busiest persons in the village of Kildonan. Whether it’s the workshop, the rice sector, or the contracted projects that he’s working on, Sawh was pleasant and graciously welcomed the team while his workers awaited his instructions.

The proprietor noted that his son is currently studying mechanical engineering at the University of Guyana. He is optimistic that his son will carry on the family’s legacy for generations to come.