–as gov’t looks to improve Guyana’s drainage, irrigation infrastructure
–millions of dollars to be spent on rehabilitation of sluices countrywide, Dr Jagdeo says

TO strengthen Guyana’s drainage and irrigation capacity, as well as respond to the adverse effects of climate change, the government will expend some $26 billion to construct massive canals across the country.
This was revealed by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) General Secretary, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo during his press conference at Freedom House, on Thursday.

Dr Jagdeo said that the Hope-like canals will be built in Regions Three, Five and Six. In Region Three it is expected that the drainage and irrigation structure will target some 28,000 acres of land; in Region Five, 214,000 acres, while in Region Six, 188,000 acres of land will see better water management.

The Hope Canal which has Guyana’s largest sluice, aids in directing excess water towards the Atlantic Ocean. The massive drainage and irrigation infrastructure located in Region Four was commissioned back in 2014, and has eight doors that function as a drainage sluice.

The funding for the new projects, Dr. Jagdeo said, will come from the country’s sale of carbon credits to the American oil firm, Hess Corporation.
This, he highlighted, is in keeping with the country’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), as 85 per cent of the country’s carbon credits proceeds are intended for climate- adaptation projects.

Aside from this, Dr Jagdeo also disclosed that $47 million would be expended to facilitate rehabilitation works at over 60 sluices across the country. Simultaneously, the government is also building out the capacity of pumping stations.

“The 19 pumping stations will have 37 pumps installed… the number of beneficiaries, once they [pumping stations] are completed, will be over 140,000 persons who will benefit from improved services in their communities, both drainage and irrigation of a domestic nature and also for agriculture areas,” he said.

Dr Jagdeo related that by adding these 37 pumps to the country’s drainage and irrigation system, 5,260 cubic feet per second pumping capacity will come on stream.
“That is a massive amount of water that you can get rid of if you have floods,” he said.

Another 2,480 cubic feet per second pumping capacity will be added to the system as the government also intends to purchase 40 new mobile pumps.
“If you add all of this in the five years, we will be budgeting around $155 billion to improve drainage and irrigation structures and to make our economies more resilient to flooding because of climate change and to improve our capacity to address water management,” Dr. Jagdeo said.

During a recent invited comment with the Guyana Chronicle, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha disclosed that before the end of year, several Cusec mobile pumps will be installed in villages across the country.

“In Guyana [and] this part of the world, we are the most disaster-prone area…when you have drought, you have extreme drought like what we are encountering now and when you have rainfall, you have extreme rainfall where places are flooded out which we have suffered in 2021, so we have to be prepared for both.”

Currently, Guyana is experiencing a prolonged dry season and Minister Mustapha said that the government is working diligently to ensure that farmers in every region have access to the necessary planting materials and an adequate water supply.