Residents of Mocha/Arcadia and other communities along the East Bank of Demerara can expect improvements in their community’s drainage capacity with the addition of six mini excavators to six Neighborhood Democratic Councils.
On Friday, Agriculture Minister Hon. Zulfikar Mustapha handed over the six mini-excavators to the chairpersons and other officials from the Eccles/ Ramsburg, Mocha/Arcadia, Little Diamond/Herstelling, Soesdyke/Hui’s Te/Coverden, and Hauraruni/Yarrowkabra NDCs.
The six excavators represent an investment of approximately $96 million.
Minister Mustapha said that President Dr. Irfaan Ali and Vice President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, in recognizing the role of the NDCs, instructed that all NDCs in Guyana be equipped with a mini excavator to assist with clearing and maintaining community drainage channels. This, he added, forms part of the government’s efforts to empower NDCs across the country.
“Today, we are here to assist with empowering your NDCs to carry out their duties because, as a government, we recognize the important role you have to play within the communities. You are the first contact with the people in the community, and they depend on you to take care of various responsibilities. Heading into the Local Government Elections, we made certain commitments to the people of this country through the NDCs. We’ve already implemented or fulfilled most of those commitments. We remain committed to implementing mechanisms to enhance the communities, and this is one method we are using to enhance the communities – by ensuring every NDC is equipped with the necessary resources to function,” Minister Mustapha explained.
Minister of Local Government Sonia Parag said that this year, the Ministry of Local Government will also roll out an initiative to equip each NDC with a compactor garbage truck.
“The President and Vice President tasked us with ensuring that the NDCs are well equipped, not only financially, but also with the necessary equipment to function better in their capacities. We want the first level of response to come from the level of the local democratic organs. While the Ministry of Agriculture through the NDIA has been working on the main canals, we have the internal drains, which are the responsibility of the Neighborhood Democratic Councils. So, this is the first phase of equipping them. Later on, through the Ministry of Local Government during 2025, we’ll roll out an initiative, which is an initiative from the President himself, that will see each NDC receiving compactor garbage trucks,” she explained.
Minister Mustapha also emphasized the importance of these machines in advancing the development of comprehensive drainage systems to withstand the impacts of climate change. He further noted that the initiative is part of the Government’s broader efforts to modernize and strengthen the country’s drainage infrastructure, ensuring better resilience against flooding.
He also said that the ministry’s National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) will work along with the various NDCs to maintain the excavators. The Ministry of Local Government will work along with the various NDCs to develop a work plan.
