Rehabilitation ongoing at the Palms
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
Over the past years government has been working continuously to improve the facilities and services offered at the Palms Geriatric Institution, Brickdam to allow the hundreds of elderly residents to live in a more comfortable setting.
There are several projects planned for this year which includes the construction of a sterilization unit at the Palms. This unit will save referrals to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GHPC) for diabetic patients who need daily treatment for wounds and infections. It will also allow patients to be treated on site and in a timely and efficient manner. Additionally, the institution will be able to save money as well from the cost cutting cost for transporting the patients to the GHPC.
A recreation building is to be constructed which will house
a TV room, games room, gym and a canteen. This is intended to provide a comfortable setting where residents can enjoy social activities to keep them alert and be physically and mentally fit.
Contracts for minor repair works (joinery repairs and painting to windows and wards three and four) to be done on the Palms have already been awarded and construction is expected to start shortly.
A contract has also been awarded for the construction of a concrete reservoir and the excavation and concreting of an existing reservoir.
The Palms currently house 208 residents who are over the age of 65 and is the only institution of its kind which is fully funded by the Government. It operates under the umbrella of the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security.
A full-time welfare officer deals with the problems of residents and liaises with their relatives. A 24-hour care service is maintained by a team headed by an Administrator.
Support services are provided by a doctor, a matron and other medical and ancillary staff who are responsible for all other services at the facility. Physiotherapy, public health clinic and a pharmacy are available at the Palms through a collaborative arrangement with the Ministry of Health.
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Multidimensional approach needed to improve Region’s security – ACCP President
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
Members of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police (ACCP) met today for a week of discussions on advancing regional security, where they were urged by the Association’s President Darwin Dottin to consider the need to adapt to the environment of crime today.
The opening ceremony of the 24th Annual General Meeting and Conference of the ACCP which was held at the Pegasus hotel was attended by Police Commissioners from throughout the English speaking Caribbean, French Antilles, Suriname, Curacao, Aruba, Belize the British and US Virgin Islands.
The ACCP was conceptualised following a gathering of Police Commissioners at a regional conference in Trinidad and Tobago in 1972. It was however officially formulated in 1986 after some nine commissioners met at a subsequent conference in Jamaica and adopted the ACCP resolution.
Its objective was to foster regional cooperation to deal with criminal activities which include narcotics, terrorism and organised crime, the exchange of information in criminal investigation, the sharing of common services such as training, forensic analysis and research and the effective management of law.
Dottin who is also the Barbados Police Commissioner described the law enforcement and security environment in those days as “benign” and totally different from today.
“The security environment that we face today and contemplate for the future is increasingly fluid and characterized by a complex and dynamic mix of continuing and emerging challenges and opportunities. Our response to those challenges must also be multidimensional and reflective of the critical link between social development and regional security,” Dottin said.
He alluded to an Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) study which said the Caribbean is at the “geographical crossroad between the world’s largest cocaine producers and the world’s largest drug consumers”.
The study also said that the region is a transit point for large quantities of narcotics with a street value that exceeds the value of the entire legal economy and as a result the proceeds drug trafficking far exceed the resources to protect the small islands and countries form this scourge.
The increase in and possession of firearms was cited by Dottin as one of the main consequences of persons connected to the drug trade and this has a destabilizing effect on communities.
The ACCP President also alluded to technology as a main contributor to regional vulnerability.
“Our vulnerability in this area is evidenced by our dependence on computers and Information Technology to drive critical operation. Our increased use of information Technology may disrupt the information that increasingly lubricates the information that increasingly lubricates our economy and government. It is therefore critical that we continue our efforts to reduce our operational deficits and vulnerabilities to this technology,” Dottin said.
Climate change was also cited as a security challenge to many societies as it threatens population movements and food production and results in catastrophic disasters.
The solution to some of these challenges, Dottin noted, calls for a security force that is well resourced through training, modern facilities and a criminal justice system that is efficient.
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Legislation, other action equipping Police Force to better combat crime – President Jagdeo
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
At the opening of the annual Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police conference today, President Bharrat Jagdeo reminded delegates that their recommendations have been seriously considered by the Caribbean Community, while highlighting the efforts of his administration on the legislative front to aid the Guyana Police Force to better combat crime.
He indicated that recommendations arising out of the previous conference were adopted into a list of very practical ideas by Heads of Government at the CARICOM 13th Special Meeting of the Conference of Heads in Trinidad and Tobago, including the establishment of a polygraph capability within the region.
“We haven’t established that capacity in Guyana’s case. We’ve brought in people on a routine basis, and all the members (of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit) have been polygraphed twice…we have moved to airport security, some special units in the police, and this would be a routine feature,” the Head of State said.
Also, several pieces of legislation have either been passed or already implemented that seek to aid the local police force in defeating criminality. These include:
- The Criminal Procedure Act which allows plea bargaining;
- The Interception of Communications Act;
- The Telecommunications Amendment Act to ensure a record is kept of SIM cards and mobile telephones; and
- The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering of the Financing of Terrorism Act.
“These are the tools that are necessary to our law enforcement agencies. Sometimes, we get so caught up with the strategy that we forget that we need tools and the policy makers need to give the tools,” President Jagdeo reiterated.
In relation to the Criminal Procedure Act, the President explained that plea bargaining will allow the police force to negotiate, to secure the arrest of persons who may have otherwise been able to escape prosecution.
“We have…passed the Criminal Procedure Act which allows plea bargaining and plea agreement. Our police will be able to use this when we are getting some people, as horrible as they are and criminals that they are sometimes, you have to make a deal with them to get prosecution to get other people in jail,” he explained.
Other efforts to aid the fight against crime include moving to electronic means of conducting ID parades and presenting evidence.
“We found that when witnesses show up to ID parades, you have witnesses targeted so we are moving to have this done electronically and also electronic forms of presenting evidence so witnesses can’t be threatened…they could be abroad hopefully and give evidence,” the President said.
He also heaped praise on members of the police force for their efforts. “I agree that we constantly need to work to provide better conditions for policemen, but I’ve seen what commitment can do on the leadership of the police force. I feel in Guyana we have a committed Commissioner of Police and Chief of Staff (of the Guyana Defence Force), and we have had results… I am proud of them because they perform well, comparable with many countries that have better pay,” the Head of State said.
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Indigenous NGOs, President Jagdeo meet on Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
President Bharrat Jagdeo met with representatives of indigenous Non Governmental Organisations on May 8, to discuss Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) which is scheduled to be launched this month - end.
Represented at the meeting were Jean La Rose and Lawrence Anselmo of the Amerindian Peoples Association (APA), Peter Persaud of the Amerindian Action Movement of Guyana (TAAMOG), Pamela Mendonca and Ashton Simon from the National Amerindian Development Fund (NADF); and Jocelyn Dow representing the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) as independent consultants on behalf of the Government of Norway. Also in attendance were Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai and Chairman of the National Climate Committee Shyam Nokta.
President Jagdeo outlined that the LCDS will provide the broad framework of Guyana’s response to climate change and will hinge, in particular on Guyana deploying its forests to mitigate global climate change.
President Bharrat Jagdeo in discussion with indigenous NGOs on Guyana's Low Carbon Development Strategy
He further indicated that the strategy builds on work done in the last year which culminated in the launch in December 2008 of Guyana’s Position on Avoided Deforestation which essentially serves as the model for the strategy’s development. President Jagdeo informed that several initiatives which are underway, such as the Readiness Planning Initiative with the World Bank will be subsumed within the LCDS.
In outlining the process, President Jagdeo informed the group that at the launch of the Strategy there will be a wide cross-section of stakeholders including representatives from indigenous and forest communities. In addition to the main strategy document, there will be a question and answer booklet to capture the essence of the strategy in layman language as well as to provide responses and clarification on a number of key issues.
The launch will be followed by country-wide awareness exercises using the media with radio and television presentations and discussions, and with a web-site dedicated to providing information. In addition, there will also be outreach programmes involving schools and also regional consultations in Regions 1, 7, 8, 9 and 10 as well as on the Essequibo Coast and in Berbice. These fora will allow for wide stakeholder involvement and participation and will also seek to target indigenous and forest communities in particular.
President Bharrat Jagdeo in meeting with indigenous NGOs at Office of the President to discuss Guyana's Low Carbon Development Strategy.
In responding to several questions regarding indigenous people’s participation in the LCDS and the issue of indigenous lands, President Jagdeo pointed out that the Avoided Deforestation model was developed utilizing State Forests only with the intent that following consultations and dialogue with indigenous communities, those communities can then make a decision if they would like to participate and in doing so commit their legally titled lands to be part of the LCDS. The President reiterated that many issues may come up during the consultations which will provide the opportunity for discussion on all aspects of the LCDS and its implementation.
President Jagdeo extended an invitation for the indigenous organsations to be part of the process and to participate at the launch of the LCDS and the various consultation fora that will follow.
The meeting concluded with a general agreement by the NGOs of their involvement in the process. President Jagdeo indicated that meetings and interaction with him and his team will be a regular feature of the process.
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Crime becoming more transnational, multilateral approach needed– President Jagdeo
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
The transnational nature which crime has taken was among the concerns highlighted as Regional Commissioners met today for the 24th Annual General Meeting and Conference of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police (ACCP).
President Bharrat Jagdeo who addressed the commissioners said domestic action alone will not be sufficient to deal with crime which is today highlighted by the flow of drugs throughout the region.
“We need to have a multilateral agreement reflective of this challenge and it’s not any type of multilateral agreement, it is a multilateral agreement with our developed countries,” President Jagdeo said.
Highlighting some of the flaws in the relationship between the developed countries and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) President Jagdeo expressed concern that it is often uneven.
President Bharrat Jagdeo addressing Police Commissioners at the ACCP's 24th annual conference, Pegasus Hotel.
He was also unapologetic about the United States of America being the largest source of money laundering but believes that the new US administration is willing to change the relationship.
“I have spoken to our ambassador and we need to work, all of you have to contribute to it so when our Ministers of national security meet with the new Secretary for Homeland Security in the US that they would benefit from your deliberations here,” President Jagdeo said.
He urged the Police Commissioners to focus on the practical solutions that can improve the relationship and form a new framework for partnerships that are largely based on equals.
President Jagdeo believes that in the long-run, the relationship with the US will be characterized by a “enhanced contact” as US President Obama during the Fifth Summit of the Americas promised to meet CARICOM leaders.
President Bharrat Jagdeo and Police Commissioners at the ACCP's 24th annual general meeting and conference, Pegasus Hotel.
“Your input will be very useful… you have a very important task ahead of you,” President Jagdeo said.
The ACCP was conceptualised following a gathering of Police Commissioners at a regional conference in Trinidad and Tobago in 1972. It was however, officially formulated in 1986 after some nine commissioners met at a subsequent conference in Jamaica and adopted the ACCP resolution.
Its objective was to foster regional cooperation to deal with criminal activities which include narcotics, terrorism and organised crime, the exchange of information in criminal investigation, the sharing of common services such as training, forensic analysis and research and the effective management of law.
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200 low-income homes to be established in hinterland communities
-under 2nd LIS programme
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
The Ministry of Housing and Water in its pursuit to improve the quality of life of low-income families will be establishing 200 homes in the hinterland regions.
With the recently approved US$27.9M loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for the implementation of the second Low-Income Settlement (LIS) Programme, the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) and the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs will be collaborating on the design for the intervention.
Minister of Housing and Water Irfaan Ali said the initiative which will be undertaken for the first time will see the establishment of housing communities in the hinterland regions.
“We are in the process of selecting ideally eight areas that we would have initial interventions and this would see the establishment of 200 low-income homes within the hinterland communities,” he said.
He said the establishment of the housing communities will be similar to existing ones on the coast land. “This of course has a number of benefits; it will bring community life closer, foster greater integration, collaboration and cooperation among the people,” Minister Ali said.
The second LIS programme is a follow-up to the first that was successfully implemented by the CH&PA and completed in 2007.
The programme is designed to improve low-income families’ access to enhanced living conditions through housing solutions and access to house lots. It is expected to benefit about 12,000 people, (about eight percent of the country’s households).
The first programme had realized an achievement rate of 95% at the end of 2006. About $800M was spent on developing infrastructure in that year for more than 9,000 house lots.
Meanwhile infrastructural works are being conducted in various regions across the country including Number 77 Village and Fort Ordnance, Region Six, Parfaite/Harmonie, Region Three, Non-Pariel, Region Four and Amelia’s Ward, Region Ten.
“We have a lot of investment at the moment, a lot of infrastructural work that is ongoing, all aimed at increasing the stock of house lots that we have available,” Minister Ali added.
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Forestry industry to re-position, re-engineer in light of world financial situation - prospects still good as demand for dressed lumber, wood increases
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
The Forest Products Development and Marketing Council of Guyana Inc. (FPDMC) today held a forum at the Guyana International Conference Centre (GICC), Liliendaal aimed at garnering valuable inputs from the relevant stakeholders to move the forestry industry forward in light of the world financial crisis.
Chairperson of the Board, Merlin Udho said the forum arose out of the need to engage and interact with stakeholders who are directly involved in the forestry industry. She noted that even though the board was made up a diverse group of persons, they felt that broader inputs were necessary for the way forward.
“Basically we have to look at re-positioning and re-engineering,” she said in light of the current financial situation which has resulted in loss in markets, and investments and jobs being at stake. Udho stated that the industry needed to “look inwards” if it is to be competitive.
Minister of Agriculture Robert Persaud who was present at the forum said that despite the global financial situation, demand for some wood products has grown especially in the areas of dressed lumber and that it is necessary that adjustments be made in light of this situation.
The two percent commission on exports that has been removed by government has given the industry a significant boost, Minister Persaud said.
Udho said that stakeholders must not only look at the negatives of the industry since there are still many opportunities in the sector and urged that stakeholders take advantage of working together since persons should not think it was business as usual.
Issues that were examined at the forum include the management style involved in the industry, technological advancements, and creativity in terms of products for demand, diversification.
Minister Persaud said the Council was on the right course and that Guyana has a significant amount of forestry resources which can be utilized but stakeholders must be consistent with the long-term needs of the industry. For this reason, much emphasis has been placed on sustainable forestry management by the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC) and support for this initiative has been garnered from international agencies. GFC is seeking to achieve international standards.
With respect to the guidelines set out by GFC, Minister Persaud said he is satisfied that they are appropriate and relevant to ensuring viability of forestry resources.
The role of GFC has not only been to enforce guidelines and monitor forestry activities, but to educate stakeholders as to what are the requirements. As such, a manual with guidelines was given to the relevant stakeholders. The guidelines were achieved after stakeholders were engaged and consultations were complete. This manual is also used by non- governmental and other agencies.
GFC has been making significant progress with compliance with respect to extraction, an area of much concern. Minister Persaud stated that there was a mechanism within the FPDMC whereby stakeholders could highlight their concerns.
The Agriculture Minister said that even though there was a dip in production in 2007, the industry has been increasing its output.
As the industry seeks to further improve and expand, the International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) had been tasked with looking at the difficulties in the industry and making recommendations. FPMC is a product of one of the recommendations.
In the latter half of 2007, several key forest sector stakeholders requested that there be a thorough review of the FPMC’s mandate, and board composition to allow for private sector representation. A national consultation was held in February 2008 and the end result was the formulation of FPDMC with a board of directors comprising five representatives each from the private sector and the Government of Guyana, along with an independent chairperson.
The Council has been tasked with a number of responsibilities including aggressively engaging diversification, product development, promotion of lesser used species, branding, marketing, training and enforcing standards.
FPDMC has played a significant role in moving forward President Jagdeo’s proposal on avoided deforestation.
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Home Affairs Minister meets East Coast CPGs
On Sunday 10th May, 2009, at 10:30hrs, Minister of Home Affairs, Clement Rohee met with members of the Haslington, Golden Grove, Nabaclis and Belfield Community Policing Groups (CPGs) at the President’s College where several concerns were raised by the members.
Among the concerns raised were acts of lawlessness, sale of narcotics, animals being slaughtered without being examined, and truancy.
The CPG members expressed the need for assistance to protect their communities, and to facilitate access to other Ministers.
Minister Rohee expressed his gratitude for the invitation to meet with the groups and said that his Ministry was tasked with the responsibility of working closely with CPG’s across the country to ensure that they remain active and were provided with the necessary stores to assist in providing peace, safety and security in the various communities.
He remarked that Community Policing was 33 years old and had achieved a lot since its establishment. He stated that the importance and significance of existing CPGs is best appreciated when it is not there, since persons take things for granted.
In relation to breaches of the peace, the Minister pointed out that valuable lessons could be learnt through association with faith-based organizations to assist in correcting such situations.
He said that narcotics sale was a universal plague and every effort was being made by law enforcement agencies to deal with it.
Speaking on the question of responses to criminals in possession of illegal weapons, the Minister made it clear that it was not the intention to have CPG’s members engage in close combat with armed and dangerous criminals but to be the eyes and ears of the Guyana Police Force in their respective communities. Members were advised to expand and improve their information gathering systems so that accurate and timely information could be given to the Police so that the appropriate and timely action could be executed.
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President hopeful police commissioners would come up with solutions to region’s challenges
Georgetown, GINA, May 11, 2009
During his address to the 24th Annual General Meeting and Conference of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police (ACCP) today at the Pegasus hotel, President Bharrat Jagdeo expressed the hope that the top security officials would spend some time during the five-day meeting to examine the crises affecting the region’s people and also to come up with solutions.
He was also hopeful that they would look at the manner in which developed countries deal with challenges to their societies, including in the area of security as he made reference to the United States where the Democrats and the Republicans collaborated and passed the Patriot Act in wake of the 911 incident.
The Head of State highlighted the challenges which he said have ravaged the region’s image and economies for ever 10 years. He made reference to the monoculture-type economy of the Caribbean which has largely been based on exports to preferential markets, markets which are today disappearing.
In this regard he said that the present challenge for the region is to work towards reorienting the economies and changing the norms which the region has grown accustomed to for the past 100 years.
“Multilateral regimes that are not favourable for exports are insisting more and more that we compete on terms which are not favourable to us, on terms which we will never be able to survive with because frankly speaking, St. Kitts and Nevis, with 30- 40,000 people will never be able to compete with the USA,” President Jagdeo said.
A section of the gathering at the 24th Annual General Meeting and Conference of the Association of Caribbean Commissioners of Police.
Speaking from an economic standpoint, President Jagdeo said most countries are faced with a debt repayment crisis with a majority of their revenue dedicated to servicing external debt. Citing Jamaica, he said that country uses about 60 percent of its revenues for that purpose and here in Guyana, at one stage 94 percent of this country’s revenues were chanelled toward debt-repayment. Fortunately, the Head of State said it has now come down to four percent today.
Food security was another factor which the President Jagdeo said has been a potential threat to the region. This phenomenon resulted in striking increases in food prices across the region.
“Everyone realised that agriculture is important because we live off cheap food. We import $4B worth on cheap food from other parts of the world. In the future, arable lands are going to be scarce. By 2030, three-quarters or maybe 85% of the world’s population will have some form of water shortage. We need water and arable land to grow food,” President Jagdeo explained.
The devastating impact of climate change is linked to food security concerns and according to President Jagdeo, too little attention has been paid to this aspect.
“We need to catch up; … we have seen what is happening in many of these countries, we’re going to have increased frequency of hurricanes - 80 % of gross domestic product could be wiped out by a single hurricane. In Guyana’s case we had the floods (2005) that wiped out the equivalent of 60 percent of GDP
Climate change will also affect tourism as this causes coral bleaching and rising sea levels. This is an industry that many Caribbean states depend on for their income.
He explained that these are all challenges that need resources to address them, to re-orient economies, fix infrastructure, shift production base, for adaptation and mitigation purposes in climate change, for drainage and irrigation and other marketing activities so that more food could be grown.
President Jagdeo also urged that attention be given to the global financial crisis which he said has resulted in much instability in economies around the world.
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