Latest update March 29th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 17, 2012 News
With an initial US$3 million revolving fund and a proposed preferential investment rate of 2.5 per cent, plans are being streamlined by the Ministry of Housing and Water, through the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI), to introduce an integrated water resource management system.
According to Minister Irfaan Ali, the sector is currently seeking to look at the most efficient ways in which water can be utilised and to ensure that there is less wastage of water.
Ali was at the time speaking at a GWI-hosted stakeholders’ consultation forum held at the Georgetown Club on Monday. He revealed that already the Ministry has seen five expressions of interest from private entities to aid the implementation of the project. Among the entities are the Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL), Cevons Waste Management Incorporated, Puran Brothers Waste Disposal Service, Madewini Villas and Caribbean Container Incorporated.
“A lot of these private companies will have to meet international standards and part of the standard now, internationally, is to establish environmentally-friendly waste water treatment facilities,” the Minister asserted.
He made reference to the fact that since such an endeavour is relatively new to these parts, it is understandable that some banks may not be very willing to offer financing.
“We are aware that this is new and the commercial banks are sometimes not desirous of financing such activities that they see will bring in very little profitable returns,” Ali noted, even as he stressed that such facilities are seen as a necessity if efforts are to be made to access regional and international markets.
He pointed out that it was against this background that the notion for a revolving fund was established, and intimated that a proposal from DDL has already been found to be favourable.
“I am pleased to inform that we have advanced with the DDL proposal so far, because they have had the most detailed proposal,” Ali said. He vocalised his expectation that in the not too distant future, perhaps within the next six weeks, the Ministry will seek to collaborate with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) with a view of launching the first project under the initiative.
Already the IDB is financing massive rehabilitation work on the near century-old Georgetown Sewerage System to the tune of US$10M, an undertaking, which according to the Minister, is linked to the proposed water resource management system.
The introduction of the project will be supported by the Caribbean Fund for Waste Water Management, which Ali emphasised is a pilot initiative that represents new ground for Guyana.
“This is the first time that we are implementing a project that looks at the treatment of waste water from industrial zones… So under this project we will have public/private partnership in treating waste water that goes out back and waste water that can be reused.”
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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