Canal No 1 residents can now report issues directly to Govt via new app

Residents of Canal No. One Polder, West Bank Demerara, can now report their local issues directly to the Government through a new app aimed at improving response time and ensuring that every concern is tracked and addressed promptly.
In a bid to enhance communication with local citizens and ensure faster responses to local issues, the Local Government Ministry is rolling out a new app that allows citizens to report issues directly to the authorities. This announcement was made during a community meeting between residents, Local Government and Regional Development Minister Priya Manickchand and other Government officials on Monday.

During the meeting, key issues raised by residents included challenges faced by farmers, infrastructural development and drainage concerns. While addressing these issues remains a priority, Manickchand highlighted the significance of this app, which was designed to improve accountability and efficiency in responding to community concerns.
“You can go on this [app], [and] you can say, ‘My problem is a bridge that has too high a slope’, or ‘The road that’s broken’ or ‘My yard that’s flooded’ or ‘the garbage that hasn’t been picked up,’ and we will respond to that from a central level,” the Minister said.
The app, which is currently in a testing phase, is also designed to provide practical information to residents, including the location of the nearest police station, the head of the Neighbourhood Democratic Council (NDC) and where they can be located, how they can be contacted and ongoing public works. Officials are currently working to ensure his app can accurately respond to all queries, including those which might have been initially out of scope.
“We found out that some of the issues you are likely to raise might not be issues that the robot, it›s a bot, has an answer to. So if you say something like, ‘There’s a noise nuisance next to me, John playing the music loud,’ the bot may say, ‘Sorry, that’s not something we can help you with right now,’ and that’s not a response we want from our app. So, we’re actually teaching it what the responses might be to questions that might come up,” she said.
Manickchand and Public Utilities and Aviation Minister Deodat Indar, who was also present at the meeting, reassured residents that the Government is open to conversation and sustainable development and will make all efforts to improve the quality of living in Canal No. 1. The Ministers expressed the farmers’ pride in their produce, which reflects the area’s long-lasting reputation for bountiful fruits and vegetables.