Guyana establishes joint commissions with African, Asian countries

Guyana has established joint commissions with several African and Asian countries in its bid to expand its diplomatic connections throughout the world. Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge said the initiative was born on the sidelines of the 71st United Nations General Assembly in New York through meetings between members of the Guyanese delegation and senior Government officials from other countries. Some of the countries with which Guyana has entered into joint commissions are Spain, Ghana, Liberia and Nigeria, according to the Foreign Affairs Minister. “We would have drawn to their…

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Joiner in custody over alleged rape of eight-yr-old girl in Berbice

An East Bank Berbice, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) joiner is now in custody after he was caught in a compromising position with an eight-year-old child. Reports are that the 49-year-old man lured the girl and her brother to his home where he committed the act. According to a Police source, the child lives with her 27-year-old mother, who is a domestic worker and has two other children. It was reported that on Friday, while the victim and her brother were on their way home from school, the joiner called the…

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Linden convicted robber nabbed with unlicensed gun, ammo

A Twenty-five-year-old man of Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden, who was recently sentenced in absentia to five years’ imprisonment for armed robbery and the unlawful possession of firearm and ammunition, was on Monday arrested by Police ranks at his home. Eon Ward, commonly known as “Killa” Ward will now face an additional charge since the Police unearthed an unlicensed 9mm Ruger Semi-Automatic Pistol with seven matching rounds of ammunition. Once the charge is read to him, he will be taken to prison to commence his five-year sentence. “Killa” was charged on…

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Govt announces plan to resuscitate Co-ops in Guyana

The Social Protection Ministry’s Labour Department  is working to resuscitate cooperatives across Guyana. This announcement was made by Minister within the Social Protection Ministry with responsibility for Labour, Keith Scott, who said there are plans to have youths involved in the process. On Monday, Scott met with members from the cooperative societies in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara) at the Toevlugt/Patentia Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC). The meeting was held at Good Intent Village. Scott said the Ministry planned to visit all the cooperative societies to assist them in restructuring their…

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Mother fined G$100,000 for abandoning child on road

A mother who on Tuesday appeared before Magistrate Faith McGusty charged with endangering her infant was ordered to pay a fine of G$100,000 or face an alternative sentence of three months in prison. Jewel Coates, 35, of West Ruimveldt, Georgetown, appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts and was not required to plead to the charge. It is alleged that on September 30, 2016, she wilfully contributed to her three-week-old child being in need of protective intervention. During the hearing, Coates told the Magistrate that she did not want the infant…

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Guyana launches One Laptop Per Teacher project

President David Granger on Wednesday launched the One Laptop Per Teacher’s Project at the Cyril PotterCollege of Education (CPCE), coinciding with World’s Teacher Day celebrations. Some 168 National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA) students, as well as first year teachers of CPCE were the initial beneficiaries of the pilot project, which is a rebranded initiative of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) One Laptop Per Family Project. During the launching ceremony at the teacher’s training college, President Granger underscored the importance of this initiative in paving Guyana’s pathway to the digital world.…

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Govt summons Chinese company to meeting over US$150M airport expansion project

… says project “woefully” behind schedule The Public Infrastructure Ministry is unhappy with the progress being made by China Harbour Engineering Ltd (CHEC) on the US$150 million Cheddi Jagan International Airport Extension Project and has since decided to haul in the contractor for a meeting to address the unsatisfactory issues. According to a statement issued by the Ministry on Wednesday, among the concerns to be addressed is the fact that CHEC is still to submit the final construction drawings of the new arrival terminal building. This complaint has been a…

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The need for a more ‘consensual’ form of democracy

October 5 passed without much fanfare even though it was the 24th anniversary of “free and fair” elections being returned to Guyana. Starting in 1968, the PNC under Forbes Burnham had rigged elections to thwart the democratic will of the Guyanese people and keep his party in power. In the post-WWII period, there had been great expectations raised in the minds of the populace that independence from colonial Britain via democratic elections would augur a life of prosperity and dignity for all Guyanese. It was self-evident to the populace that…

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Agriculture in Guyana

If this is October, then it must be “Agriculture Month”. And so it is, with the Ministry of Agriculture taking out full page ads in all the dailies to announce the “theme” for this month – “Exploring new production frontiers: in pursuit of climate resilience”. There was also the obligatory month-long series of activities designed to “not only focus on the resuscitation of the agricultural sector to increase efficiency, but will target the advancement of small and medium scale farmers across the ten administrative regions.” But what does this really…

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‘25 scandals in 16 months’: Opposition alleges widespread corruption in Govt

The A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, led by President DavidGranger was elected to office just over 16 months now and the political Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has concluded that the coalition Government has already been embroiled in more questionable practices than the PPP/C which ruled Guyana for 23 years. The Office of the Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, on Wednesday said it has been diligently monitoring the APNU/AFC Government’s use of public funds and the levels of transparency and accountability; issuing an eight-page ‘dossier’…

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