TODAY, the Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development will host a national consultation on the Integrated Solid Waste Management Bill, bringing together Regional Democratic Councils (RDCs) and Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) from across the country to examine and discuss the proposed legislation aimed at strengthening Guyana’s solid waste management framework.
This engagement forms part of the ministry’s continued efforts to promote coordinated, sustainable, and effective waste management nationwide.
Last September, President Dr. Irfaan Ali announced the establishment of a National Solid Waste Management and Beautification Initiative, a collaborative effort among the Ministries of Local Government, Tourism, Housing, and the Office of the First Lady.
The initiative will see the creation of ‘green’ spaces and community beautification projects. Work has already commenced in this regard.
Currently, there are several landfill sites operating across the country, but all have reached or surpassed their limit.
The government is pushing for the development of new landfill sites, with a focus on modernisation and environmental sustainability. The government is committed to not only expand capacity but also innovate waste management.
The government has added a number of landfills designed to protect waste from polluting the environment, as well as several other projects to properly manage the disposal of solid waste.
On Tuesday, Local Government and Regional Development Minister Priya Manickchand disclosed that immediate relief is on the way for residents of Georgetown following mounting complaints about the city’s deteriorating sanitation conditions.
In a statement, the minister disclosed that she met with garbage collectors contracted by the Georgetown City Council after what she described as the municipal body’s failure to take “practical or sensible” action to address the situation.
During the engagement, the service providers outlined several challenges, chief among them being outstanding payments stretching back months, despite funds being available at the City Council.
“At this meeting, the providers offered their challenges, including that they hadn’t been paid in months although there is funding at the City Council for that. We found solutions. You will see and feel relief shortly,” Minister Manickchand shared on her official Facebook page.
According to her, the meeting resulted in solutions aimed at restoring regular garbage collection, with residents expected to see changes soon.
On Monday, Mayor Alfred Mentore and councillors aligned to A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) backed out of a scheduled engagement aimed at charting a way forward on the city’s worsening solid-waste disposal challenges.
Minister Manickchand had disclosed that the mayor had initially accepted an invitation to attend a closed-door meeting at 11:00hrs to discuss a way forward for solid-waste management in the capital.
According to Minister Manickchand, the decision to widen the invitation was intended to foster inclusive dialogue and benefit from the perspectives of councillors representing residents across the city.
The sudden withdrawals, she noted, undermined ongoing efforts to build a collaborative working relationship between Central Government and the Mayor and City Council (M&CC).
In view of the developments, Minister Manickchand said she invited members of the media to be briefed on the extent of work already undertaken by her ministry to improve coordination with the M&CC, as well as on “various discussions that have been had where commitments were made by the M&CC but not kept.”
On Sunday she expressed her displeasure with the state of Georgetown, giving city officials up to 11:00 hrs the following day to submit a comprehensive plan that will reverse the situation.
Within recent weeks, there have been complaints in numerous areas about a disruption in garbage-collection services.
