CNOOC, GTTA distribute table tennis equipment to hinterland schools

In preparation for the first-ever National Schools’ Table Tennis Championship, CNOOC Petroleum Guyana Limited (CPGL) donated table tennis equipment to bridge the gap for students in remote areas.
The presentation took place at CPGL Kingston head office on Thursday.
The donation, valued at $4 million, included 14 tables distributed to schools across Regions One, Six, Seven, Eight and Nine. An additional table was given to the Ruimveldt Children’s Home and Care Centre.
The Ministry of Education’s Deputy Chief Education Officer for Amerindian and Hinterland Education Development, Marti De Souza applauded the initiative’s alignment with the Ministry’s focus on sport development, and expressed the belief that the equipment will positively impact the hinterland communities.
“So we would all know that the Ministry of Education has a focus on sports development, and table tennis is one of the sport we are very keen on developing across. It was mentioned that because of the lack of resources in our hinterland schools, we cannot get the best out of all our students across the country, but today we have representation of villages from all across the country,” De Souza shared.
Meanwhile, Guyana Table Tennis Association (GTTA) President Godfrey Munroe highlighted the significance of the donation in enabling table tennis to be played “across the length and breadth” of Guyana.

Munroe said, “It’s truly an honour and privilege to stand before you here today to show how grateful we are here to CNOOC for partnering with the Table Tennis Association and Ministry of Education making this significant investment in sports in our community and our people, more particularly table tennis.
This investment is symbolic and is being $4 million and it allows table tennis to be played across the length and breadth of Guyana in terms of having national championships in the various regions across Guyana.”
He went on to expound on the disadvantages faced by Regions One, Eight and Nine, with the lack of equipment, and thus training will be provided alongside the equipment.
The schools in Region One that will benefit are Waramuri Primary, St Nicholas Primary, North West Secondary, Yarakita Primary, and Port Kaituma Primary.
In Region Six, one table will go to Orealla Primary, while Three Miles Secondary in Region Seven will receive two tables.
Kato Secondary and Mahdia Secondary in Region Eight, along with Karasabai Primary, Katoka Primary, Mururunau Primary, and Nappi Primary are the beneficiaries in Region Nine.
In Region Four, the GTTA will present one table to Ruimveldt Children’s Home and Care Centre, as Munroe emphasised the importance of inclusion in the sport.
CPGL’s sponsorship aims to build upon this foundation by establishing a nationwide school championship.