Govt working to improve housing in Amerindian communities

The Government, through the Hinterland Housing Project, is working on building quality neighbourhoods and sustainable communities for Amerindian villages, according to Minister within the Communities Ministry, Dawn Hasting-Williams. In addition, Chief Education Officer (CEO) Marcel Hutson said the Education Ministry of is working to ensure quality and updated education delivery in the hinterland communities.

Minister Hasting-Williams was addressing a gathering of Toshaos and village leaders at the National Toshaos Conference. She said the Government is committed to working with the Amerindian Village Councils and villagers to ensure sustainable development.
“We have interventions ongoing in Regions One, Seven and Nine and that is where we are meeting with the Village Councils, having discussions with them and having them come up with their own house plans and we have a number of discussions with them to see how best we can improve housing in the Amerindian communities…”
“… We want to ensure that you have increased access to potable water, so we are not just building homes; we also ensure that we provide you with potable water. When we build your homes and if you don’t have proper sanitation outlet we ensure that we build sanitation outlets,” Hasting-Williams added.
She further stated that the aim is to ensure that there is less overcrowding, in Amerindian homes, and to improve the quality and sustainability of the communities.
In the 2017 budget, $100 million has been allocated for the construction of 115 subsidised housing units and 45 roof and water catchment system subsidies in Regions One (Barima-Waini) and Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo).
Under the Hinterland Housing Project, there would be full house replacement and/or a roof replacement. A full house replacement means families will be provided with a one-storey elevated timber building in Region One, or flat burnt-brick building in Region Nine, measuring 500 square feet, with four rooms and front and back stairs; zinc roofing, guttering and a 400-gallon water tank.
Under roof replacement, they will be provided with zinc sheets for their houses, measuring no more than 5000 square feet, complete with guttering, fittings and a 400-gallon water tank.
Meanwhile, CEO Hutson said they are cognisant of the fact that there are issues to be addressed in the education sector and are working assiduously to bridge the gap in education delivery between the Hinterland and the coastland. He added that they are also trying to improve the education quality of teachers in the Hinterland communities.
“We are looking to bring science, technology, and engineering in Hinterland Regions. We are looking to align teaching materials, reviewing and restructuring the acquisition of education materials and to ensure that is accessed on a timely basis,” Hutson stated.
Quite often teachers in the Hinterland areas complain about the lack of updated educational materials and the quality of services delivered.