The Government of Guyana (GoG) expended the sum of $15B in the first half of 2019 from its $35.6B budgetary allocation, the government’s 2019 Mid-Year report revealed.
The expenditure, according to the document, is in keeping with the government’s push to ensure that the provision of law and order, protection of the populace, and the safeguarding of Guyana’s borders are maintained.
GUYANA POLICE FORCE (GPF)
During the first half of 2019, the sum of $6.1B was expended towards a number of activities to further strengthen the Guyana Police Force’s (GPF) objective to deliver the highest standard of professional police services and to serve and protect citizens by preventing and detecting all forms of crime in the maintenance of law, order, and the preservation of the peace.
“Through various interventions, serious crime declined by 3.2% in the first half of 2019. Some of these interventions included training of 124 ranks in basic forensic bloodstain pattern recognition; forensic video analysis; advanced crime scene photography; scene drawing; and community-based crime prevention strategies in 10 communities,” the report outlined.
Further, of the nearly $700M that was budgeted for the construction and improvement of police stations, the sum of $78.2M was expended as at the end of June 2019.
Designs for police stations and divisional headquarters at Golden Grove, Fort Wellington, Mabaruma, and Mahdia have been completed and construction is anticipated to commence in the second half of the year.
Also, of the $0.5B budgeted for vehicular and marine fleets, canine and mounted branches, and equipment for GPF, approximately $84.8M was reported to have been expended at the end of the first half of 2019. In addition, during the same period, the Guyana Forensic Lab was equipped with deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and gun residue testing machines to conduct DNA analysis to aid in solving crimes.
CUSTOMS ANTI-NARCOTICS UNIT (CANU)
According to the Mid-Year Report, the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) spent $165.1M of the budgeted sum of $350M in the first half of 2019. During this period, a total of 112.9 kilogrammes of cocaine, 186.2 kilogrammes of cannabis, 36 grammes of ecstasy, and 590 grammes of unknown substances were seized.
GUYANA PRISON SERVICE (GPS)
The Guyana Prison Service (GPS), in delivering its mandate of ensuring safe custody and effective rehabilitation of inmates, was allocated approximately $4B towards the maintenance and improvement of the prison environment across the country, the report stated.
Meanwhile, designing the reconstruction of the New Amsterdam prison will commence during the second half of this year. Some components for the rebuilding of the Camp Street Prison, including steel cells, have already been procured, with works to begin in the second half. The expansion of the Mazaruni prison is ongoing and the project remains on track for completion in the second half of 2020. These upgraded facilities are intended to alleviate the overcrowding situation across the prison system. The procurement of equipment intended to improve the safety of officers and inmates, including body scanners, has commenced and is expected to be concluded in the second half.
To ensure that the Prison Service is staffed with qualified and competent officers with the necessary skill set to allow them to effectively manage this complex environment, 24 new recruits were trained in the areas of supervision, correctional emergency response, leadership, and emergency medical procedures, among others (read more on this development: https://www.guyanastandard.com/2019/08/15/govt-recruits-skilled-officers-to-manage-complex-prison-environment/)
The recruitment drive in the first half of 2019 brought the size of the Service to just over 500 officers, still short of the required 601.
THE GUYANA FIRE SERVICE (GFS)
Meanwhile, the report states that the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) continues to work assiduously to ensure that it fulfils its mandate of protecting life and property. The award for the procurement of five new ambulances, one airport rescue and firefighting vehicle, and two new water tenders was made in the first half of 2019 and delivery is scheduled before the end of the year.
The recent establishment of a maritime firefighting section of the GFS, which will address emergencies on Guyana’s waterways as well as support onshore firefighting operations, is expected to be fully operational by August 2019. Some 60 trainees are expected to join their ranks in September 2019.
