US$340,000 IDB technical agreements signed
By Priya Nauth
THREE Technical Cooperation Agreements totalling more than US$340,000 under the Mini-Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), under its Private Sector arm the MIF, were signed yesterday.

The formal signing ceremony was held in the Boardroom of the IDB country Head Office in Kingston, Georgetown.

The IDB recently approved four new Technical Cooperation Agreements and representatives of three of the four successful applicants signed their agreements yesterday.

These are Upper Berbice Forest Producers Association (UBFPA) for their project on Management and Operations Training in the Forestry Sector; Institute of Private Enterprise Development (IPED) for their project on Integrated Farming, and the Iwokrama International Centre for Forestry Conservation and Development for their project on Sustainable Forestry.

Conservation International, though approved for funding for their project on Community Tourism Enterprise Development, will be signing their agreement at a later date.

Country Representative of IDB, Mr. Marco Nicola, explained that the MIF is the Private arm of IDB and since its inception in 1993, the guiding principle of the MIF is to promote broad based economic growth through private sector development particularly micro enterprises and small businesses.

“Using both grants and investments, MIF actively seeks partners to help test and then demonstrate the effectiveness of innovative ideas…projects are intended to become self sustaining and potentially to reach a scale capable of changing the lives of millions of people through Latin America and the Caribbean,” he emphasised.

He said MIF is the leading source of technical assistance grants for micro and small business development in Latin America and the Caribbean approving more than 1000 projects primarily grants with over 800 civil society, private sector and the government partners, creating a community of change agents to both stimulate the private sector innovation and share lessons learnt.

Additionally, he said, more than US$2.2 billion has been invested in all 26 developing countries of the IDB.

He disclosed that over 30 institutions submitted projects and 15 were invited to submit detailed proposals which were divided into four groups: forestry, small business development, tourism and agriculture.

The Country Representative said that IPED, UBFPA and Conservation International were declared eligible and Iwokrama had applied for MIF funding prior to mini-MIF, however, their proposal was deemed suitable for funding by MIF.

Operations Analyst of MIF, Mr. Tariq Williams during a brief outline of the mini-MIF said that in recent years, the MIF has decentralized its operations increasingly using IDB country offices to identify, process and implement small projects.

He asserted that the idea behind this drive is to enable MIF to reach many more potential clients through smaller programmes particularly in rural areas.

“In this regard, one of the most popular initiatives is the Delegation of Authority Programme or the mini-MIF,” Williams declared.

He said the mini-MIF was introduced in 2001 with the purpose of increasing the level of local ownership and project responsiveness with the specific target of the programme being to meet the growing demand for small-scale projects supporting small producers and micro or small enterprises that were difficult to reach by the larger MIF projects.

Also, he noted, under this programme, the mini-MIF would contribute a maximum of US$150,000 in grant financing to improve the conditions of low-income populations by strengthening and expanding their income generation alternatives.

He pointed out that a significant development in the mini-MIF initiative occurred in March 2007, the second phase of the programme was approved to provide for non-reimbursable technical assistance to local private sector institutions to implement small but innovative pilot projects designed to increase the competitiveness of small enterprises.

Mini-MIF can now fund projects until 2015, he said too.

According to Williams, priority areas that MIF looks at in accessing proposals are innovative business relationships; improving Small Medium Enterprises (SME) competitiveness through eco-efficiency; use of information and communication technology; improving small business access to the formal economy; and skill standards.

Minister Manickchand urges single parents to get registered
MINISTER of Human Services and Social Security, Ms. Priya Manickchand yesterday urged all single parents to get registered for the Single Parent Fund over a three-week period.

“The registration process to register all single parents was launched and we are going to attempt to get all single parents registered on a national single parent register,” she explained at a press conference.

Information collected from the registration process will help to plan effectively what interventions would be taken to assist single parent families.

She said this is going to be an ongoing programme since government realises the hardships single parents face.

Also, she noted the Ministry will meet with single parents to find out what are some of their needs since needs vary in different communities and groups.

Minister Manickchand said even before the increase in food prices, the government recognised the constraints faced by vulnerable groups, such as single parent families.

It is the Ministry’s intention to register all persons who are primarily responsible for the financial maintenance of child/children.

A person would not have to necessarily be the biological parent of a child to access help, the Minister said.

Ms. Manickchand pointed out that an older sibling/guardian or a grandparent who is solely responsible for a child or children will be entitled to access assistance.

The sum of $100M was allocated in this year’s budget for the setting up of a fund to provide support to vulnerable single parents.

The Ministry also assists children with school uniform vouchers that cost the government millions of dollars annually.

From the registration forms distributed, the Ministry will be able to determine what interventions are required.

All single parents are urged to complete the registration form as soon as possible and return it to the location from where it was uplifted.

The closing date for the registration period is May 15.

The form can be uplifted from any Regional Democratic Council (RDC) offices, Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) office and respective schools in the area and social workers. The form is free of cost.

Also present at yesterday’s press conference were Minister in the Ministry of Finance, Jennifer Webster; Minister of Public Service, Jennifer Westford; Minister in the Ministry of Education, Desrey Fox; Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai and Members of Parliament Indra Chanderpal, and Presidential Adviser Gail Teixeira.

They all endorsed Minister Manickchand’s call for single parents to get registered for the Single Parent Fund.

Police expand missing aircraft probe
THE Police are to expand their investigations into the mysterious disappearance of a small Piper Seneca aircraft from the Anna Regina runway, Essequibo Coast, between October 13 and 14, 2007.

In addition, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has advised that charges be levelled against some persons the police had questioned during the initial probe of the investigation, a source told the Guyana Chronicle yesterday.

The blue and white plane with red stripes and the markings 8RGAA belonging to Fenix Airways Inc which operates from an office it rents in the ASL hangar at Ogle, East Coast Demerara, was left parked at the Anna Regina airstrip.

The pilot accompanied by his wife and children who had made the flight with him from Ogle, then journeyed to a family residence some miles away.

There was also another passenger, John Johnson, a foreigner and who has since evaded the investigators, aboard the plane that Fenix Airways Inc. leased from Air Services Limited (ASL) just about a month prior to the disappearance.

Johnson is said to be closely associated with Fenix Airways and there is a Guyanese passport in his name and documents purporting to show that he is a naturalised Guyanese. The investigations have revealed that the immigration document bears a fake number, the source said.

Additionally, the Guyana Chronicle has learnt that investigators have reached a dead-end in their efforts to peruse the documentation which Johnson had submitted to support his application for naturalisation.

The same Johnson was reportedly fingered by some individuals as the person they saw driving the plane away from the airstrip after the pilot had parked it.

During the initial stages of the probe the Police had detained and questioned extensively several persons including the pilot, his wife and major shareholder of Fenix Airways, Vladmir Vanzo.

They were subsequently released after habeas corpus writs were filed in the High Court on their behalf.

Vanzo is said to have only made part payment on the aircraft, hence the registration still shows ASL as the owner.

Following the missing claim, the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) had alerted neighbouring states Venezuela, Suriname and Brazil but to date there has been no trace.

GCAA Director Zulfikar Mohamed was reported as saying that several of its regulations have been breached and the imposition of charges where necessary, was being considered.

The Anna Regina airstrip is about four miles aback the town with thick bushes on both sides. A derelict building nearby had served as the booking office for Fenix Airways.

Residents of the town have said that although the airstrip is hardly-ever used by aviation officials, who utilise the Kayman Sankar hangar at Hampton Court, strange small aircrafts are frequently seen landing there or hovering around the area.

On March 19, 2005 a U206G II Station aircraft bearing false registration numbers was found on a remote airstrip at Kwapau in the Mazaruni.

The single-engine, six-seater , grey and white Cessna 26 aircraft was believed used in a blotched cocaine drop and investigators were seeking to determine why the drug runners had abandoned the plane on the airstrip.

It was last registered in Florida but was never ‘de-registered’ from the United States. (Wendella Davidson)

Friday night gun robbery victim reported stable
SIXTEEN-YEAR-OLD Roy Stanton, of Lot 65 East La Penitence, who was shot in the left thigh when he resisted in a robbery attack last Friday night, was reported in a stable condition at Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) yesterday.

During the hold-up in the city, the bullet passed through his leg but, fortunately, did not damage any major blood vessels, said his mother, Felicia Roberts-Stanton.

She said her son and two friends were sitting on a bench outside their home when three men rode up on bicycles, around 22:30 h and commanded: “Nobody move!”

The woman said, initially, the lads thought the trio were policemen and obeyed the command. But when they demanded everything from the victims, the latter realised that the attackers were bandits.

They robbed the teens of two cellular phones and about $15,000 cash.

However, Stanton, who was wearing two gold chains, put up a struggle before one of the bandits eventually relieved him of the jewels.

One of the enraged assailants then pulled a gun from his pocket and discharged several rounds, one hitting Stanton.

His mother said, after wounding him, the men escaped on their bicycles, firing at Stanton’s father but missing him as he was returning home.

It was when he saw a crowd in his yard that he realised his son has been injured and helped rush him to hospital.

Police are continuing their investigations into the attack.

ARMS top 2007 CSEC candidate gets Blue award
ANNA Regina Multilateral School (ARMS) top 2007 Caribbean Secondary Certificate Examination (CSEC) candidate, Sarah Yassin, has been awarded the 2008 Anne Blue Scholarship.

The award, for her outstanding academic achievements and community service, entitles her to a $250,000 prize and a plaque, with which she was presented by Manager of the Blue Fund, Ms. Magda Pollard.

The presentation took place at a simple ceremony in the National Centre for Educational Research Development (NCERD), Battery Road, Kingston, Georgetown, in the presence also of students from several Georgetown schools and top officials of the Education Ministry.

Yassin thanked her benefactors and pledged to maximise the benefits of the good gesture.

She is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Medical Technology at the University of Guyana (UG) and the award stipulates that the sum be disbursed to her over a six years period.

Pollard, a national awardee of the Golden Arrowhead of Achievement (AA) and the Cacique Crown of Honour (CCH), explained that Yassin received $20,000 on being selected and will get another $30,000 at the commencement of her second year of studies.

The scholar will get further disbursements of $50,000 in her third, fourth, fifth and sixth years, respectively.

The scholarship seeks to offer young people with outstanding academic ability a chance to realise their potential and accomplish their goals by:

* assisting them to complete their high school education;

* affording them the opportunity to pursue higher education and

* fostering academic excellence through competition.

Yassin, an aspiring medical technologist attained an average of 83 per cent from grades seven to 11 in 11 subjects at the CSEC level and grade ones in English A, English B, Mathematics, Social Studies, Integrated Science, Human and Social Biology, Chemistry, Principles of Business and Information Technology.

She secured grade twos in Physics and Biology.

During her secondary schooling, Yassin was a prefect and participated in a number of science fairs and helped organise several social activities.

Senior Mistress in the Department of English at ARMS, Mrs. Judy Lall, said Yassin has done her parents, school and teachers proud and expressed gratitude to the scholarship committee.

Assistant Chief Education Officer, Ms. Melcita Bovell, described the honour as a celebration of life, scholastic achievement and the conferral of love in assisting bright young minds.

Chief Education Officer, Mrs. Genevieve Whyte-Nedd, admonished other students to set high standards and strive to emulate the qualities of the late Ms. Blue.

Pollard lauded the work of Blue, the distinguished Guyanese scholar and her friends and family, who have diligently undertaken to spread her legacy through the scholarship programme.

Ann Elizabeth Candace Blue was born in British Guiana, on June 11, 1956 and, during her lifetime, served as a nurse, attorney-at-law, teacher, real estate broker and a community leader.

She died on July 5, 1993.

(Tajeram Mohabir)

Gov’t will create opportunities for Linden to do better - PM Hinds
CENTRAL Government will continue to do all that it could to prepare Lindeners to create the opportunity for improved education and health in order that they would be better disposed to take advantage of the opportunities that would come along.

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds relayed this message to a large crowd of mainly Lindeners at the opening ceremony of the Linden Town week activities yesterday.

He was at the time referring to the opportunities to be derived from the completion of the Takutu Bridge linking Guyana with northern Brazil.   

He told the gathering at the Linden bus park that the world is now interdependent and to progress one needs to develop relationships and partnerships.

The Prime Minister said that he understands the concerns expressed by some persons; that Guyana may be overwhelmed by Brazilians, as they seek to exploit the opportunities that would be created by the road link, but he posited that it is left to the people of Linden to position themselves to take advantage of these opportunities.

He encouraged the Lindeners to not allow the community to return to being a ‘one company town’ but to seek to develop the economic activities that sustained it during the period when bauxite was at its lowest and to continue to look for ways to diversify the economic activity of the community.

He told the residents that Government is pursuing the revival of the bauxite industry with large investments expected soon from BOSAI and RUSAL.

Chief Education Officer Genevieve White-Nedd, a citizen of Linden by birth, delivered the feature address.   She encouraged residents of the Town to come together to respond to the changes affecting the community since no one-entity could develop the community.

She encouraged the leaders to come together and have a common vision as they work to achieve a better life for all the people of Linden.

Addressing the parents, the Chief Education Officer told them to take responsibility for the education of the children. She admonished them to ensure that the children complete secondary school since a primary education is not enough to be competitive in today’s world.

She said that special attention should be given to boys. “They should be socialized to pursue education to be better able to manage their households since well managed households make productive communities which create a productive country.”

White-Nedd reminded that males and females learn differently, as such it is the responsibility of educators to ensure that they do not teach in abstract since the boys will lose interest in education.

Speaking on the value of education the Chief Education Officer said that it is vital in changing the economic status of individuals therefore youths should be encouraged to achieve their best.

Addressing the plans for the development of the community, White-Nedd said that it is important to pursue excellence and preserve the peace and unity in the face of investments.

Other speakers at the opening ceremony included Regional Chairman of Region Ten Mortimer Mingo, who reminded the people that they should be proud since the Linden town day activity has given birth to similar activities in other communities.

Leader of the Opposition, Robert Corbin, said that over the years he had seen the town developed in ‘leaps and troughs’ which gave the people of Linden the courage to face any new challenge with an indomitable will to survive.

Greetings and similar sentiments were also expressed by Alliance For Change executive member and Member of Parliament, Sheila Holder, Presidential Adviser on Empowerment Odinga Lumumba, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government Seewchan, and Project Manager of the Linden Economic Advancement Programme, Kathleen Whalen.

The opening ceremony saw displays of various talents ranging from dance to poetry by persons of the community while the delegates for the Miss Linden Town day and the Miss Big and Beautiful pageants, to be held later in the week, were introduced to the community.

The Linden Town Week has been celebrated annually for the last 13 years. This year Linden is celebrating 38 years as a township. (GINA)

Ministry of Education launches crisis support training for teachers
MINISTER within the Ministry of Education, Dr Desrey Fox, yesterday declared open a three-day workshop on psychosocial and crisis support training for teachers at the Ocean View Convention Centre, Liliendaal.

The workshop is being held in collaboration with the University of Guyana, the Ministries of Health and Human Services and Social Security and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to prepare teachers to act as first responders for children who are affected by traumatic situations.

Explaining the genesis of the programme, Dr Fox said that after the massacre at Lusignan, the Ministry held a consultation with teachers from the schools on the East Coast Demerara to ascertain what intervention could be made to assist students to cope with the trauma.

During the consultation it was discovered that both teachers and students were affected by the massacre, as well as other acts of violence that occurred in the community. It was therefore decided to prepare teachers to be first responders, to identify, deal with and recommend for referral where necessary, in the process of rebuilding lives, she said.

Barbara Thomas-Holder, representing the Sociology Department at the University of Guyana said that the department will be holding five such workshops in Regions Four and Seven mainly to build the capacity of teachers to identify and deal with students who suffer as a result of violence or crisis.

A structured curriculum has been prepared by the Health Ministry’s Mental Health Unit which is to manage the referrals.

Over 40 teachers from schools on the East Coast Demerara would be trained at this first workshop. Facilitators will be drawn from the Ministry of Health and Human Services and Social Security and the University of Guyana.

CARIFESTA tribute for Wordsworth McAndrew
PRESIDENT Bharrat Jagdeo, in extending tribute to Wordsworth McAndrew, has said that the government will pay special tribute to the folklorist during the staging of the tenth Caribbean Festival of Creative Arts (CARIFESTA) this August.

“I express profound sadness at his death and extend deepest sympathies to his family, relatives, friends and to all those who share in his bereavement,” the President said in a statement yesterday.

The President said McAndrew’s passing was ill-timed given the preparations for CARIFESTA, but said “a special homage” will be paid during the festival to the contributions of “this exemplary Guyanese.”

“Wordsworth McAndrew was a trailblazer in the study and understanding of local folklore. Through his explorations of this subject, he helped us to celebrate our common roots. Through his work on oral traditions, literature, music and on radio, he has grounded us in our rich and diverse cultural history,” the President said.

The foundation that he laid in the field of local folklore is of inestimable value; his work timeless, standing not only for his own generation but for all times, the President added.

“For helping to define those common threads that form part of the fabric in which we are all adorned, Wordsworth McAndrew will remain an example for all, showing the importance of folk culture in the quest for national identity and cohesiveness.”

Septuagenarian thanks God for being unharmed after manse burglary
SEVENTY-NINE-YEAR-OLD retired pastor of the Church of Good Shepherd, Esme Gibbs, yesterday thanked God that she was not harmed during a burglary, last Wednesday night, at Lot 58 Bent Street, Wortmanville, Georgetown.

The blind geriatric, who is due to celebrate her 80th birthday next month, was in the manse behind the place of worship when it was burglarised.

Having lost both eyes to cataract, she sat, still nervous, at the thought that she could have come to harm had it not been for her nieces.

Three burglaries had been committed on the church before her residence was targeted last week.

Gibbs had been asleep in the derelict building which she shares with her 36-year-old niece and the seventeen-year-old daughter of the latter, around 02:00 h.

The septuagenarian believes the lone intruder fetched away some of his booty and then returned to rummage through handbags which contained a small sum of money and two cellular phones.

The burglar was using the light on one of the phones to guide him around the premises when the teenager awoke and screamed, alerting her mother who raised an alarm.

Neighbours responded quickly and, armed with sticks, cutlasses and other implements, gave chase but failed to apprehend the fleeing thief who bolted through the door and broke a section of the picket fence to escape into D’Urban Street.

Later, they saw a chair which he apparently used to enter the insecure house.

Concerned about the latest incident, residents in the neighbourhood noted that, over the last three weeks, thieves have been on the rampage there.

The burglars thrice broke and entered the church and stole a microphone, a key board and music box, before a failed attempt at the house next to where Gibbs lives.

Workplace under focus at World OSH Day seminar
THE necessity for people to understand the nature of occupational safety and health (OSH) at the workplace and the responsibility attached to its promotion were the major focus at a seminar yesterday.

The programme, conducted in the Banks DIH Boardroom, Ruimveldt, Georgetown, coincided with the observance of World OSH Day.

It was organised by Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB), in collaboration with General Workers’ Union (GWU) and Union of Agricultural and Allied Workers (UAAW), towards effectively managing risks at workplaces.

The purpose was to sensitise Banks DIH staff on the need to engage in safe practices, such as maintaining healthy environments and preventing accidents.

Minister of Labour, Mr. Manzoor Nadir, in his remarks, said, every year, the world is rocked by shocking figures of industrial deaths and accidents, leaving the responsibility on society to adhere to measures implemented to progressively lower the accident and death rates of workers in their working environments.

He implored employers to adhere to the OSH laws and put proper arrangements in place to avoid industrial mishaps.

Nadir emphasised that it is the duty of employees to recognise those actions for their own safety and health.

He said issues of employment, elimination of child labour and safe workplaces are on the front burner to be addressed, in addition to the reinforcement of the Workers Compensation Act which was promulgated in 1997.

Nadir said OSH Inspectors will increase their vigilance and prosecution after attending training sessions to boost their skills.

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Dindyal Permaul, who delivered the feature address, declared that OSH is the personal responsibility of every individual and should not be seen only in the context of industrial entities, where a majority of casualties occur.

Paramount consideration should be given to the office or any other environment where people converge to work, he stated, adding that emphasis must be placed on the diverse agricultural sector where a majority of casualties occur.

He observed that safety concerns have assumed immense proportions and some environments that were considered safe can actually contribute to occupational accidents.

Permaul made specific reference to the chemical risks associated with extensive exposure to pesticides, noting that the effects are not felt immediately and may not be seen by the employee as cause for concern. 

He alluded to the improper use of safety mechanisms in the workplace and mentioned several cases where industrial environments affect the health of workers who fail to properly wear protective gear.

Meanwhile, in 2006, 1,183 work related accidents were reported locally, seven of them being fatal.

The figure of the non-fatal accidents increased to 2,031 in 2007, with fatalities number five and, for the first quarter of this year, 121 were recorded, three fatal.

Unfair to pay taxes for land not occupied - GWI
AT a hurriedly called press briefing, last Friday, hosted by the Guyana Water Inc. (GWI) Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Karan Singh asserted that it is unfair for the company to pay rates and taxes for land they are not occupying.

GWI made this assertion following the saga over payment between GWI and the Mayor and City Council (M&CC).

Mr. Singh pointed out that the M&CC spoke about the payment of rates and taxes that is owed them by GWI.

He noted that the M&CC gave permission to some people to maintain and construct houses on the land in question which is located at the back of Section ‘K’ Campbellville, Georgetown.

“How can we pay taxes for land we are not occupying?” Singh queried. He noted that GWI is not an “unscrupulous entity” as they are being painted.

“We are not going to be threatened to be taken to court, we respect the court and we can deal with it through arbitration or court but in the meantime we will go after revenues that is owed to company,” he lamented on Friday.

Mr. Singh pointed out that “in every facet of our lives we depend on water” and people have to start respecting that need, and pay for water services, because GWI will disconnect any customer who does not pay their water bill.

Regarding the use of land along Mandela Avenue, in Georgetown, Mr. Singh noted that the reserve was enclosed specially for the utility companies by the government but now the land is being occupied by big businesses.

He said the area spanning from the Central Ruimveldt well, GWI has pipelines but is unable to get access to them.

“The M&CC gave permission to those business owners to occupy that reserve,” Mr. Singh said.

GWI noted that there is a possibility that many of these businesses have been tampering with the pipelines and such lawlessness is of concern to the utility company.

“We are tired and weary of constant abuse of people who bypass meter and then some complain of low water supply when their neighbour down the road is using a water pump to milk the system,” he explained.

He urged customers to remain vigilant and assist the GWI so that they can provide a better service.

He added that there is recklessness usage of water by the M&CC and deemed them as owners of the markets and to ensure that there is no wastage there because GWI provides treated water to those markets and many times pipes are left running.

Also present at the press conference on Friday were GWI’s Director of Commercial Services and Customer Relations, Rajesh Majeed, Manager of Operations, Dwayne Young, Director of Corporate Services and Marceline Small, Officer in Charge of Key Accounts, Nigel Niles. (Michel Outridge)

CARIFESTA a critical tool of regional integration
CARICOM Assistant Secretary General with responsibility for foreign and community relations ambassador Colin Granderson said, CARIFESTA is a critical tool of the integration process as it promotes greater awareness of the many sides of the region’s heritage.

According to a release, Ambassador Granderson who was addressing the Launch of the Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA) last Wednesday, told an outdoor audience of thousands of Guyanese and a strong delegation from the Region that the Festival was the major forum for cultural expression and cooperation in the Community and the wider Caribbean Region.

He added that culture was increasingly being perceived as the root and fruit of the development of the Caribbean Community: “…the root, because it goes to the heart of who we are as a people; the fruit, because it is the product or manifestation of our identity. This product, through our cultural industries, can also bring significant economic returns,” he explained.

The Assistant Secretary General underscored the need for CARIFESTA to become a dynamic process in order to remain interesting and relevant, and acknowledged the artistes of the Region whom he said were the chief proponents of this dynamic process.

He pledged the continued support of the CARICOM Secretariat in ensuring the success of this special event which he said, provided us with a unique opportunity to see and to celebrate ourselves as a people of one Region.

Against the backdrop of a dazzling display of revelry, artistry and showmanship, Guyana rolled out well-advanced plans for the staging of the event and according to Mr. Granderson, “if what we see tonight is but a small taste of what we can expect from CARIFESTA X,” then the Region should anticipate what is to come with great excitement.

The rich cultural presentations were choreographed by Dr. Paloma Mohamed, the Artistic Director of CARIFESTA and her energetic team included Guyana National Combined Steel Band who tantalized the crowd with Caribbean rhythms.

Masquerades also exploded on stage with a riot of colours and drama; African Maroon and Javanese dancers from Suriname with a fusion of drumming, dancing and martial arts, blazing a path for the piece de resistance, the Limbo dancer, Makeba Gabriel from Trinidad and Tobago who ignited the audience with her fiery performance.

The evening’s launch climaxed with the spectacular unveiling of the CARIFESTA Logo and song by President Bharrat Jagdeo.

CARIFESTA returns to its birthplace after 36 years on 22-31 of August and will be hosted under the theme: One Caribbean; One Purpose - Our Culture; Our Life.

Tourism ministry donates computer for Miss Linden Pageant
THE Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, has donated a computer for the winner of the Miss Linden Pageant which is slated for May 3, at the Mackenzie Sports Club Ground in Linden.

The presentation was made at the Ministry’s Office in Georgetown, when the eleven delegates vying for the title paid a courtesy call on Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Mr. Manniram Prashad, last Wednesday, at his office on South Road, Georgetown.

He said the delegates expressed their satisfaction in having a computer as one of the prizes and this is an indication that the young ladies are thinking about their career in an academic way.

Prashad also assured the Ministry’s continued support towards the initiative.

The minister commended the delegates for taking part in the event, emphasising that the ladies are all winners in a sense because of the opportunity presented to them and are ambassadors for the country.

He observed too, that various companies will need persons with their talent to help promote their products and also tourism.

He noted that the ladies can play some role in mega events such as CARIFESTA and hope the Miss Linden can move on to higher levels because Guyana is being represented at various international pageants.

Prashad encouraged the contestants to continue promoting their community because Linden is set to take off as a centre of economic activities.

Director of Picturethis Productions, Mr. Leon Roberts, said that the pageant is not only promoting beauty but also the design capabilities of Lindeners because all the designs for the event will be produced by persons in Linden and a special prize will be given to the designer of the best gown.

Also, each participant is required to do research on their respective area for a presentation on the economic potential, historic nature and other aspects of the area.

Roberts said this is in keeping the pageant in consort with the entire concept of the Linden Town Day which is promoting Linden as a place to visit and do business.

He assured that the organisers are working assiduously to make sure it is a signal event and maintain the standard of ensuring that Guyana is well represented in an event of this nature. (Priya Nauth)

Significant reduction in road fatalities - Police
THE Police have reported a significant reduction in road fatalities, with figures showing 22 road deaths so far this year, compared to 61 for the same period last year.

The annual Police Officer’s conference, which concluded yesterday, complimented the Traffic Officer Superintendent Neil Semple and the ranks under his command.

The police in a press release said they have recognised that the reduction in road deaths could not have been achieved without the cooperation of the general public.

Consequently, the Police Force is urging all categories of road users to continue to obey the rules of the road and for motorists to drive their vehicles in keeping with the five Cs – Courtesy, Common sense, Consideration, Care and Caution.

Linden’s 38th anniversary celebrations underway
By Joe Chapman
As Linden celebrates its 38th year as a town, about 30 events spawned over a ten-day period are carded for this year's Linden Town Week Celebrations by the

Linden Town Week Committee, under the theme ‘Unite, Cooperate and Celebrate in 2008.’ 

The slated events began Saturday where a Coomacka Beach Day was held, while a Pepperpot and Casareep Exhibition will be staged over a period at the Mackenzie Band Stand. There was an all inclusive Church Service on Sunday at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground which attracted a massive turnout, as has been the case in recent years.

Residents also converged on Sunday at the Linden/Georgetown Bus Park to witness the official opening ceremony.

Yesterday there was a Schools' Drama Competition at the Mackenzie Sports Club ground and a Farmers and Craft Exhibition was held at the Linden Bus Park and this will continue until today.

A Spelling Bee Competition will also be held today at the Linden Bus Park, while the football competition final is slated for the Mackenzie Sports Club.

The final of the billiards competition is also scheduled for the same venue.

Other activities billed for the week-long celebration are: a camp fire; Farmers and Craft Exhibition; a senior citizens' luncheon; Ms Linden Town Week Pageant intelligence session among others. (Joe Chapman)

House lots in Region 10 currently unavailable - Nawbatt
- however, prospects look good by year-end when more lands would be available
By Joe Chapman
HOUSING and Water Minister, Mr. Harrinarine Nawbatt, has disclosed during his recent visit to Linden that there are no more house lots available for distribution currently.

“We have run out of house lots in Region 10, we have more people who have applied for house lots than the house lots we have,” Nawbatt said, adding that at this stage there were no more house lots available for distribution in the region.

However, by the end of this year prospects look good when more lots will become available as the Ministry seeks to have lands that will be made available by Linmine for housing purposes.

Nawbatt and a team from Linden earlier this month distributed 495 transport and titles to residents in the region.

He noted that his Ministry was visiting all the regions, as against what obtained in the past where persons would have had to go to Georgetown to receive land titles and transports. This move, Nawbatt said is to ensure that the housing programme is being monitored and that house lots were available for residents in the various communities.

However, he said all was not lost for the people in Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Upper Berbice) because “…. we are looking at those persons who have been allocated house lots and haven’t paid, or haven’t paid in full and haven’t built. And we are in the process of identifying those persons.”

The minister, however, cautioned that “we are not taking back house lots without notifying them. Sometimes we find persons are no longer living in the region or the country and we are in an exercise to recover those house lots, because some people are not interested in them anymore.”

At the same time it was disclosed that new areas are being looked at in the region including more land in Amelia’s Ward.

Nawbatt said there are other lands to be made available “where persons have already started to live in those areas but not in a large way, simply because there are no infrastructure works or very little infrastructure works. We have right now advertisements and the contractors have submitted to do some road work in another part of Amelia’s Ward.”

The minister was not willing to expand on the other areas which could become available soon.

“We haven’t gone to Cabinet as yet to get Cabinet’s approval. After Cabinet has given its approval, then we could probably explain what we will be doing so that persons could comfortably go in those areas and build their houses, because, then the infrastructural works will be there.”

He added: “We have another area with about a thousand house lots but the plan has to be completed.

When that plan is completed then we will be able to allocate, even though some persons have already gone to live there, we will be able to allocate house lots, hopefully those things could happen by the end of this year.”

On what have been ongoing talks by the Ministry of Housing with the Linmine Secretariat on land previously owned by the bauxite industry, which could be used as housing areas, it was noted that persons are already occupying some of those areas while others will become available to new applicants. According Ms Denise King-Tudor, Land Development and Administrative Manager within the ministry and one of the members of the team stated that there were “some areas where people are occupying lots for a very long time and we have moved forward to some extent. We were able to process titles but to give them ownership for the land we need to have those lands handed over to us from Linmine.”

For this Ms. King-Tudor said they had met with officials from Linmine Secretariat and “we are discussing the whole aspect of transferring of the land to government and we have moved forward a great deal and work is being done. So we are hoping that before the year is through or by mid year some if those areas will become available to the government so that persons could receive their individual titles.”