The Regional Democratic Council of East Berbice/Corentyne (Region Six) is engaging residents on their development goals.
“We have had an open-door policy where people would have been coming on a daily basis to meet myself and the Regional Chairman to discuss their issues. People were out of jobs, even the contractors were unable to have jobs,” Regional Executive Officer (REO) Mr. Navendra Persaud said in a recent interview.
Mr. Persaud said the administration made a decision to be engaging so that the Region could further progress. “From day one I said the REO will not run the Region by himself. We have engagements and a team effort with the Chairman, Vice Chairman and programme heads.”
The Region was assigned $1.71 billion in the emergency budget for 2020, which according to the REO, this has already been spent. From the assigned funds, $131 million was allotted to the Health sector, $122.6 million for Education, $107 million for Public Works, $50 million for Agriculture and $18.8 million for the regional administration.
He added that a “large sum” was spent for COVID-19, specifically for the return of older students to the classroom in November. Region Six also made the construction of 40 washrooms and maintenance works in schools possible to cater for the reopening.
Plans undertaken in the health sector entailed the construction of a care and treatment centre at the Port Mourant Hospital and the rehabilitation of the kitchen at the National Psychiatric Hospital. Additionally, the construction of a maternity ward at the New Amsterdam Hospital in Region Six is also under construction and should be completed by this year’s end.
Investments were also made to assemble COVID-19 units at the Rose Hall and Skeldon estates to control transmission of the disease.
The REO said several roads across were run down so the RDC included the Neighbourhood Demorcratic Councils (NDCs) to fix them. The Region also gained from support from the Ministry of Public Works on some road works.
Mr. Persaud said that the many canals, roads and sluices to be fixed, would be given priority in the 2021 budget.
