Gov’t secures US$350M Qatar loan for Parika highway extension

The government announced it has secured a US$350 million loan from Qatar to extend the Schoonord to Crane four-lane highway to Parika in Region Three.

President Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali made this announcement during a recent engagement with Malgre Tout/Meer-Zorgen area residents.

 “I just came back from Qatar and we have just secure US$350 million to continue the road to Parika and complete the new four-lane road all the way on the West Coast,” he said.

Last year, contracts worth over $11.8 billion were signed for the construction of the Schoonord to Crane four-lane highway.

The project entails the construction of a 4.1-kilometre dual carriageway reinforced concrete road, complete with an emergency lane, and rehabilitating and upgrading 2.4 kilometres of road.

The project, which is divided into eight lots, is being executed by VR Construction Inc, Avinash Contracting & Scrap Metal Inc, L-Heureuse Construction and Services Inc, Guyamerica Construction Inc, AJM Enterprise, Vals Construction, Puran Bros Inc and JS Guyana Inc.

President Ali expressed his confidence that the project, originally scheduled for completion in June 2024, will be finished well ahead of schedule.

“Hopefully, by the third quarter of this year we will be opening the new bypass highway from Schoonord to Crane,” he stated.

This development comes as the government continues to make significant progress in infrastructure development throughout the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region.

In addition to the highway expansion, President Ali said the government has undertaken an ambitious housing programme, with tens of thousands of houses and house lots being developed across the region.

Other major projects ongoing in the region include the construction of the new Demerara River Bridge, and the gas-to-energy project, which will see natural gas being piped from offshore to an onshore facility at Wales, West Coast Demerara.

Simultaneously, the administration is investing heavily in the improvement of other vital infrastructure across the region such as roads, drainage systems, street lights, culverts, and community facilities.