Pomeroon Trading, a coconut growing and processing enterprise with operations on the Pomeroon River officially opened a new library and computer centre at Abrams Creek Primary School.
The project was coordinated and funded by Pomeroon Trading, a Guyanese company funded by investors from across North America and Europe. The company has in the past, conducted several outreach projects in the community, which include the building of a dining room at Hackney Primary School, and the organising of training seminars for female entrepreneurs in the Pomeroon.
Speaking at the Blessing Ceremony, Tana Yussuff, the company’s Community Development Coordinator said that intervention marks a leap forward in the educational development of the students of Abrams Creek Primary School.
At a Blessing Ceremony held at the school, she added: “Last year we set out to develop a community of readers in the Pomeroon. Today we are excited to open the first of two Information Communication Technology (ICT) labs at local schools, and hope they inspire the next generation to develop their technology skills”.
The project is particularly notable in its collaboration between the private and public sectors. The initiative relied on strong partnerships with the Department of Education (Region 2), the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) and the Ministry of Telecommunications.
According to the company, the GEA offered its support through the installation of a photovoltaic system, and the Ministry of Telecommunications provided an ICT Hub. It is through the collaborative effort that school is now blessed with a fully functional library and computer facility.
According to Jared Kissoon, Pomeroon’s Chief Operating Officer for the Caribbean, “Every child should be offered the same educational opportunities in Guyana, regardless of location, and a key component of this is access to books and the internet. At Pomeroon Trading, we consider community service to be central to our vision and operations. We look forward to growing alongside the community in the Pomeroon”.
An officer from the Department of Education Region 2, Netram Doobay, welcomed the project and commended its immediate impact on the pupils. He encouraged the teachers along with the students.
“Read more and make full use of the computers and the internet facility, for this is important for the young minds to grow and develop in this fast-changing technological world,” Doobay said.
During the blessing ceremony, guests were welcomed with songs and poems performed by the young students. The ceremony closed with Kassandra Edwards, Abrams Creek Grade Five, thanking the team for providing the school with the books and computers and thanking the Parents Teachers Association for volunteering their time to build the shelves and paint the library room.
