PRESIDENT Dr. Irfaan Ali has outlined a sweeping programme of infrastructure, housing, social protection and economic initiatives for Linden and the wider Region 10, insisting that his government is fulfilling every commitment made in its Manifesto.
Addressing residents during a community engagement at Coomacka, Region 10, the President framed the interventions as part of a broader, integrated national development agenda in which a “stronger Linden means a stronger Guyana”.
He stressed that development “is not disjointed” but “connected seamlessly”, saying that what happens in the national economy inevitably shapes the fortunes of communities like Coomacka and Linden.
“We cannot speak about the development in isolation of what is happening in Region 10 and Linden, because development is not disjointed. Development is connected seamlessly, and whatever happens at the centre affects everything around it,” President Ali said.
Dr. Ali used the engagement to rebuke efforts to sow division over the identity and origin of investors in Linden, describing such rhetoric as a “backward step” in a modern, integrated economy. He argued that the priority should be making Linden an attractive destination for capital and jobs, particularly for young people and women.
“We have to be careful that we don’t step back in time when Guyana is on a trajectory that requires something very much different. We have to maximise every human potential, we have to maximise every land potential, water potential, if we are to realise the fullness of our development,” he said.
On infrastructure and basic services, President Ali reported progress on road rehabilitation and pledged that an additional two kilometres of road to Old England would be completed by year-end.
He acknowledged persistent water shortages in Coomacka and surrounding communities, revealing that seven boreholes had failed and an eighth yielded poor-quality water. However, he said recent success at Old England has opened a new path, even though it requires extra investment in transmission infrastructure.
“Although it will now cost a lot more money because we’ll have to build one and a half kilometres of transmission to get back here from there, I said to GWI, it is non-negotiable. Let us go there, get the well done, and build the transmission and bring it into here,” President Ali said.
He further pledged that the government would meet 100 per cent of housing needs in Region 10, promising that “every single applicant” will receive a house, and that the administration will go further to help residents actually build their homes by lowering construction costs and easing access to bank financing.
Alongside mainstream housing, Dr Ali announced plans for a social housing programme aimed at those under “extreme circumstances”, including persons with severe disabilities, single parents with multiple children, and families in deep poverty.
A HUB FOR FOOD PRODUCTION
Turning to economic diversification, the President said the Guyana Development Bank is coming into operation and will help finance new investments in transportation, tourism and agri-business in Region 10.
He outlined plans to make Linden a hub for food production, pointing to a major tunnel house programme, expanded poultry operations, and one of the largest swine production areas in the region, alongside cold storage and other value-added services.
Dr. Ali committed to work personally with local groups to structure these initiatives and to expand the region’s productive capacity, but also cautioned that real transformation demands discipline and effort.
“Already, we have spoken to a number of young groups talking about investment in transportation services, investment in tourism, investment in agri-business, and let me tell you something. You have a colleague farmer here. We want Linden to be a hub,” he said adding: “We want one of the largest swine production here in Region 10. We want to launch a massive swine production farm area. We want to launch through the development bank, groups together for cold storage, construction, and other services. These are the conversations we want to have.”
MASSIVE INVESTMENTS
The Head of State contrasted his administration’s record with that of the previous government, asserting that in its first five years in office, the PPP/C has spent “more than 100 per cent” above what its predecessor invested in Region 10.
He presented a number of figures to underscore what he described as “transformative” and “inclusive” development, including: more than $6.7 billion in education, over $20 billion in health, nearly $13 billion in social protection, and almost $10 billion in agriculture.
He detailed upgrades such as 34 hospitals, health centres and posts, hundreds of specialist outreaches, significant improvements in medicine availability, more than 2,250 households benefiting from housing investments, over $100 billion in public works, high-speed internet in 51 villages, and extensive business and skills training programmes.
In health, Dr Ali pointed to the regional hospital, two district hospitals, 17 health centres, 13 health posts, a dental unit and a regional blood bank now serving about 49,000 people in Region 10.
He highlighted the performance of the Linden Hospital Complex in 2026, including more than 206,000 patient visits, over 26,000 admissions, 5,221 surgeries, 5,711 deliveries, nearly 13,000 X-rays, almost 7,000 ultrasounds, and more than 571,000 lab tests.
He added that school health assessments now provide baseline data for almost 5,000 nursery and primary pupils, ensuring access to dental care, spectacles and hearing aids where needed.
Dr Ali further referenced cash grants, solar home systems, rooftop solar on public buildings, planned replacement of over 20,600 street lights and expanded support for education through school feeding, textbooks, teacher training, and grants across 65 schools in the region.
