The mandate of the Ministry of Public Works and Communications is maintaining infrastructure that encompasses bridges, culverts, roads, wharves, stellings and airports and, with the $12B that was allocated toward infrastructure last year, many major projects were undertaken that have improved the lives of Guyanese.
Roads network expanded and improved
To develop a safer and more efficient road network and to maintain standards in road construction and maintenance, huge sums were spent on either repairing or constructing new roads. With respect to the upgrade and maintenance of several urban roads, $611.8M was spent on several of those in Regions 2, 4, 6 and 10, while $420.1M was spent to maintain a number of miscellaneous roads in Regions 3, 4, 5 and 6
The US$22M four-lane road on the East Bank Demerara- from Providence to Diamond, along with a two-lane road to serve as a second entrance into the Diamond Housing Scheme - is one significant project that has been undertaken recently. The continued expansion of this corridor will ease the traffic congestion for many motorists. This road is slated for completion by the end of the first quarter of 2013.
The sum of US$6.6M was allocated for the Black Bush Polder Road project under which two bridges at Mibicuri and Johanna are to be constructed. The completion of this road will provide significant contributions to the agriculture sector as the Black Bush Polder is a key agricultural area. This project is a work in progress.
To cater for rehabilitation works to Sheriff Street and Mandela Avenue and the access road to CJIA, $1.6B was allocated.
Works also began on the $500M investment of expanding the East Coast Demerara corridor to accommodate four lanes of traffic from Plaisance/Better Hope to Golden Grove. The completion of this project will significantly reduce peak hour traffic along this corridor.
Hinterland Roads
Road construction, rehabilitation and maintenance in hinterland areas saw government investing more than $1.3B in areas such as Bartica-Issano, Linden-Lethem, Linden-Kwakwani, Pakaraima, Lethem-Aishalton, the Moruca, Mabaruma and Port Kaituma Networks, Upper Mazaruni and Bartica, St. Cuthbert’s Mission and Capoey.
The hinterland road project encompasses 600 miles of interior roads network which links Amerindian communities to centres of commercial and social activities.
The sum of $291M was invested for the rehabilitation and construction of the Linden-Lethem road which is being executed in three stages and currently sees three contractors engaged in works; MMC, B.K. International and Dipcon Engineering.
The road from Karasabai to Monkey Mountain is now being attended to by Omai Gold Mines Limited. Due to the heavy torrential rainfall followed by flooding in Region 9 last year, the majority of the construction works to the road networks was set back, as contractors could not have brought in the necessary equipment or material, as such only 150 feet of bridges could have been completed in the Linden-Lethem road segment heading to Monkey Mountain.
Road Safety and Street Lights
Street lights were erected and road safety markings were done along the East Coast and East Bank, West Coast and West Bank Demerara, Corentyne Highway from Tain to Bloomfield, West Coast Berbice Public Road from Number 12 village to Cotton Tree, and Essequibo Coast public road from Three Friends to Anna Regina. The sum of $193M was spent on this project while $26.3M was spent on traffic signs for the Linden to Lethem Road.
Bridges
The $600M investment for rehabilitation and maintenance work to be executed on the Linden-Lethem road facilitated the completion of a number of bridges and culverts. Further, $25M was spent on the construction of the Pirara Bridge.
Additionally, US$2.8M was spent to reconstruct, rehabilitate and maintain 14 culverts and bridges from Garden of Eden to Timehri while $40M was also spent for the construction of Perth and Perseverance Bridges in Essequibo, Region 2, and, the Jackson Creek Bridge.
The Demerara Harbour Bridge is vital to the transport network and to ensure it remained functioning efficiently, $550M was allocated for 2011 for its maintenance.
Sea Defence
The low-lying coastline of Guyana is approximately 430 kilometres long and there is need for sea defences to protect the land from the Atlantic Ocean. With this in mind, the Ministry had allocated $3B for the continued execution of works to securing the country’s defence against the sea.
The Public Works Ministry rehabilitated and maintained 340 kilometres of sea defences between the Pomeroon River in Region Two and Crabwood Creek in Region Six. This includes sea defences on the islands of Leguan and Wakenaam in the Essequibo River.
During 2011, the Sea and river defence unit completed 30,816 metres of sea defence work, which consists of both natural and manmade defence systems, countrywide.
Air Transport
Cheddi Jagan International Airport
The Government of Guyana embarked on a major project to expand the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and as such has approved a US$138M design and construction contract with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).
This contract includes an extension of the runway to a total of 10,800 feet to accommodate large transatlantic aircraft such as the Boeing 747, along with the construction of a new terminal building, acquisition of eight boarding bridges, and installation of other state-of-the-art equipment such as elevators, escalators, and x-ray scanners using three-dimensional technology, along with flight information and security monitoring systems.
Once completed, the project would ensure that the CJIA is able to meet the needs of projected traffic for several years into the future, along with becoming a hub for regional and continental traffic.
The expanded facilities at the airport are also expected to generate a wide range of economic activities, and create business and employment opportunities for thousands of people both in the construction and operation phases of the airport.
This project represents the latest installment in government’s ongoing efforts to transform and modernize the infrastructural landscape of the country, including a four-lane highway to Timehri. Preparation work has already begun.
The investment of more than US$1M helped to realise the upgrading of the Arrival and Departure Lounges, moreso the installation of 23check-in and boarding gate workstations with overhead display screens; new Flight Information Display System (FIDS) with seven large LCD screens around the airport; and two self-check-in kiosks. These upgrades will allow a smooth flow of arriving and departing passengers to Immigration counters and to Customs.
More than $200M was allocated for extending the existing runway of the Ogle Airport by 2000 feet in the southern direction and 200 feet in the northern direction and widening of the existing runway by 40 feet in the western and eastern direction. The objective is to have a runway 4200 feet in length and 100 feet wide so as to accommodate the DHC Dash 8 series 300 aircraft.
Hinterland Airstrips
Meanwhile $40M was budgeted for the continued rehabilitation of hinterland airstrips in Regions 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9, with an additional investment of $58M for the completion of upgrade works to the Bemechi Airstrip, Region 1, in addition to other works at Wakenaam, Kaieteur and Annai. These airstrips make it easier for people living in the hinterland communities to have access to other communities, moreso for trading to occur amongst the regions.
Water Transport
Two new modern ferry vessels were added to the fleet of vessels used by the Ministry to provide water transport. The roll-on/roll-off vessels, from the People’s Republic of China will significantly boost the river transportation system of Guyana as it has a seating capacity of 800, and a decking capacity of 20 Lorries or 44 cars.
The vessels are scheduled to become operational by the end of the first week in February, and to accommodate this, the Parika and Supenaam stellings are being constructed to accommodate the vessels. In recent years, billions of dollars have been spent to improve the services of the Transport and Harbours Department as heavy operational losses often occur due mainly to low tariffs, an over-aged fleet and competition from private operators.
The acquisition of the two vessels will initiate the Public Works ministry’s first phase of a plan to retire the existing ferries which have been in operation for more than 70 years.
Miscellaneous works
The Ministry also bailed out the Georgetown Mayor and City Council and also invested significantly in a massive cleanup campaign in South Georgetown specifically in and around Le Repentir Cemetery.
Furthermore, last year Central Government was spending in excess of $450M to rehabilitate various roads and streets within the city and $36.6M was spent for works to be executed on the city drainage.
Source
Roads network expanded and improved
To develop a safer and more efficient road network and to maintain standards in road construction and maintenance, huge sums were spent on either repairing or constructing new roads. With respect to the upgrade and maintenance of several urban roads, $611.8M was spent on several of those in Regions 2, 4, 6 and 10, while $420.1M was spent to maintain a number of miscellaneous roads in Regions 3, 4, 5 and 6
The US$22M four-lane road on the East Bank Demerara- from Providence to Diamond, along with a two-lane road to serve as a second entrance into the Diamond Housing Scheme - is one significant project that has been undertaken recently. The continued expansion of this corridor will ease the traffic congestion for many motorists. This road is slated for completion by the end of the first quarter of 2013.
The sum of US$6.6M was allocated for the Black Bush Polder Road project under which two bridges at Mibicuri and Johanna are to be constructed. The completion of this road will provide significant contributions to the agriculture sector as the Black Bush Polder is a key agricultural area. This project is a work in progress.
To cater for rehabilitation works to Sheriff Street and Mandela Avenue and the access road to CJIA, $1.6B was allocated.
Works also began on the $500M investment of expanding the East Coast Demerara corridor to accommodate four lanes of traffic from Plaisance/Better Hope to Golden Grove. The completion of this project will significantly reduce peak hour traffic along this corridor.
Hinterland Roads
Road construction, rehabilitation and maintenance in hinterland areas saw government investing more than $1.3B in areas such as Bartica-Issano, Linden-Lethem, Linden-Kwakwani, Pakaraima, Lethem-Aishalton, the Moruca, Mabaruma and Port Kaituma Networks, Upper Mazaruni and Bartica, St. Cuthbert’s Mission and Capoey.
The hinterland road project encompasses 600 miles of interior roads network which links Amerindian communities to centres of commercial and social activities.
The sum of $291M was invested for the rehabilitation and construction of the Linden-Lethem road which is being executed in three stages and currently sees three contractors engaged in works; MMC, B.K. International and Dipcon Engineering.
The road from Karasabai to Monkey Mountain is now being attended to by Omai Gold Mines Limited. Due to the heavy torrential rainfall followed by flooding in Region 9 last year, the majority of the construction works to the road networks was set back, as contractors could not have brought in the necessary equipment or material, as such only 150 feet of bridges could have been completed in the Linden-Lethem road segment heading to Monkey Mountain.
Road Safety and Street Lights
Street lights were erected and road safety markings were done along the East Coast and East Bank, West Coast and West Bank Demerara, Corentyne Highway from Tain to Bloomfield, West Coast Berbice Public Road from Number 12 village to Cotton Tree, and Essequibo Coast public road from Three Friends to Anna Regina. The sum of $193M was spent on this project while $26.3M was spent on traffic signs for the Linden to Lethem Road.
Bridges
The $600M investment for rehabilitation and maintenance work to be executed on the Linden-Lethem road facilitated the completion of a number of bridges and culverts. Further, $25M was spent on the construction of the Pirara Bridge.
Additionally, US$2.8M was spent to reconstruct, rehabilitate and maintain 14 culverts and bridges from Garden of Eden to Timehri while $40M was also spent for the construction of Perth and Perseverance Bridges in Essequibo, Region 2, and, the Jackson Creek Bridge.
The Demerara Harbour Bridge is vital to the transport network and to ensure it remained functioning efficiently, $550M was allocated for 2011 for its maintenance.
Sea Defence
The low-lying coastline of Guyana is approximately 430 kilometres long and there is need for sea defences to protect the land from the Atlantic Ocean. With this in mind, the Ministry had allocated $3B for the continued execution of works to securing the country’s defence against the sea.
The Public Works Ministry rehabilitated and maintained 340 kilometres of sea defences between the Pomeroon River in Region Two and Crabwood Creek in Region Six. This includes sea defences on the islands of Leguan and Wakenaam in the Essequibo River.
During 2011, the Sea and river defence unit completed 30,816 metres of sea defence work, which consists of both natural and manmade defence systems, countrywide.
Air Transport
Cheddi Jagan International Airport
The Government of Guyana embarked on a major project to expand the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) and as such has approved a US$138M design and construction contract with China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC).
This contract includes an extension of the runway to a total of 10,800 feet to accommodate large transatlantic aircraft such as the Boeing 747, along with the construction of a new terminal building, acquisition of eight boarding bridges, and installation of other state-of-the-art equipment such as elevators, escalators, and x-ray scanners using three-dimensional technology, along with flight information and security monitoring systems.
Once completed, the project would ensure that the CJIA is able to meet the needs of projected traffic for several years into the future, along with becoming a hub for regional and continental traffic.
The expanded facilities at the airport are also expected to generate a wide range of economic activities, and create business and employment opportunities for thousands of people both in the construction and operation phases of the airport.
This project represents the latest installment in government’s ongoing efforts to transform and modernize the infrastructural landscape of the country, including a four-lane highway to Timehri. Preparation work has already begun.
The investment of more than US$1M helped to realise the upgrading of the Arrival and Departure Lounges, moreso the installation of 23check-in and boarding gate workstations with overhead display screens; new Flight Information Display System (FIDS) with seven large LCD screens around the airport; and two self-check-in kiosks. These upgrades will allow a smooth flow of arriving and departing passengers to Immigration counters and to Customs.
More than $200M was allocated for extending the existing runway of the Ogle Airport by 2000 feet in the southern direction and 200 feet in the northern direction and widening of the existing runway by 40 feet in the western and eastern direction. The objective is to have a runway 4200 feet in length and 100 feet wide so as to accommodate the DHC Dash 8 series 300 aircraft.
Hinterland Airstrips
Meanwhile $40M was budgeted for the continued rehabilitation of hinterland airstrips in Regions 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9, with an additional investment of $58M for the completion of upgrade works to the Bemechi Airstrip, Region 1, in addition to other works at Wakenaam, Kaieteur and Annai. These airstrips make it easier for people living in the hinterland communities to have access to other communities, moreso for trading to occur amongst the regions.
Water Transport
Two new modern ferry vessels were added to the fleet of vessels used by the Ministry to provide water transport. The roll-on/roll-off vessels, from the People’s Republic of China will significantly boost the river transportation system of Guyana as it has a seating capacity of 800, and a decking capacity of 20 Lorries or 44 cars.
The vessels are scheduled to become operational by the end of the first week in February, and to accommodate this, the Parika and Supenaam stellings are being constructed to accommodate the vessels. In recent years, billions of dollars have been spent to improve the services of the Transport and Harbours Department as heavy operational losses often occur due mainly to low tariffs, an over-aged fleet and competition from private operators.
The acquisition of the two vessels will initiate the Public Works ministry’s first phase of a plan to retire the existing ferries which have been in operation for more than 70 years.
Miscellaneous works
The Ministry also bailed out the Georgetown Mayor and City Council and also invested significantly in a massive cleanup campaign in South Georgetown specifically in and around Le Repentir Cemetery.
Furthermore, last year Central Government was spending in excess of $450M to rehabilitate various roads and streets within the city and $36.6M was spent for works to be executed on the city drainage.
Source
