With Guyana stepping into the May/June rainy period, Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha has assured that government is fast tracking efforts to ensure drainage and irrigation systems are in order to avert a repeat of the tragic 2021 floods.
Mustapha, while in the company of a technical team from his ministry, made this statement during an engagement on Saturday with residents from several communities in the Port Mourant area on the Corentyne Coast.
Minister Mustapha also shared that based on data gathered by the Hydromet Department, this year’s rainy period will have conditions similar to that of 2021. He assured residents that the ministry has been working with the various regional bodies to put systems in place to avoid a recurrence of last year’s devastating floods. He noted for example that the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) is working to mitigate flooding across the coast.
“Right now, we are experiencing a very high intensity of rainfall. I’ve received reports that the internal drains are clogged up. Even if we clear the main canals, if the internal drains are clogged up the water will not drain. I will ask our engineers to organize and send a small team back to the area to look at the drainage issues. I will also assign a small machine to clean all the drains as soon as the recommendations come in from the engineers,” the minister said.
Residents who turned out to the meeting at Ankerville told the minister that they appreciate the efforts being made at the level of Central Government but were keen to note the need for Neighborhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) to step up and play their part. The residents complained that when reports of flooding are made to the NDC, no action is taken and that the persons who were appointed councilors have not been working in the best interest of the community.
Minister Mustapha told the residents that the government was aware that there were issues with many NDCs and that they are committed to assisting as many of these bodies which do not have the resources to function effectively. He noted however that the absence of resources should not prohibit any NDC from performing its functions and committed to speaking with his colleagues in government on what solutions could be had.
