Gov’t explores building ‘market of the future’ following Charity fire – Jagdeo 

Sections of the Charity Market in Region Two (Pomeroon- Supenaam) were destroyed in a fire earlier this month and though the government has committed to rebuilding a shed needed by the vendors, Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo says building a larger, more modern market is an option.

The Vice President spoke on Thursday at a press conference held at Freedom House, the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) Headquarters in Georgetown.

There, Jagdeo highlighted that some affected vendors have asked the government to rebuild a shed there.

Beyond that, however, he said the government is mulling the construction of a new market nearby,

“…. while there will be a commitment to rebuild a shed there, (I’ve said) we should do something major now.

“Let’s shift to a market of the future. We’re looking to see if we can identify at least 15 acres that will allow us to do that,” the Vice President said.

The current market area, he said, is too small to accommodate that modern facility the government envisions.

Still, Dr. Jagdeo said the new market could complement other developments in the area. Now, the government is building a new housing scheme in Charity and wants to facilitate more commercial investments there.

Finding available land is a challenge though. And Jagdeo said the government will only make a decision to build that new market following consultations with the vendors.

In 2021, the government spent $30 million for the rehabilitation of the Charity market.