A recent visit to Chungqing, China, by officials of Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara/Berbice) to attend a World Tourism Summit provided the platform for engagements with officials there on various initiatives that could be undertaken between the two towns that were twinned some four years ago.
During a trip to Chungqing, facilitated by bauxite mining company Bosai Minerals Group Guyana Incorporated (BMGGI) Regional Chairman Renis Morian and Linden Mayor Carwyn Holland used the opportunity to foster collaboration and sought assistance in areas which they believed Linden could benefit from.
Speaking recently about the discussions they had during the visit, Morian said discussions were favourable but noted that while the towns were twinned a few years ago, nothing significant has happened. It was with this in mind that he and Holland sought to present initiatives.
Upon meeting with BMGGI officials, he said it was suggested that the company can assist with garbage collection, which is presently plaguing the Linden community. Other areas highlighted were youth, sport and culture.
“We’re saying we think Bosai could help with garbage. We have a serious problem – from garbage collection to disposal. So we were asked to do a proposal that it can be included in Bosai 2017 budget”, the Regional Chairman said.
Further, he said the two made representation for assistance in the areas of youth, sport and culture. Noting that since there were international bodies present, they sought information on how youths here can be a part of those organisations so as to benefit from training and other areas.
The duo also met with university coordinators in Chungqing and was part of a preliminary discussion about how youths can achieve student scholarships to attend university there. The idea of youth exchanges was also discussed and Morian expressed the need for follow-ups to ascertain the possibilities of the initiatives.
“We looked at things of a cultural nature to say well, truly, the two towns were twinned four years ago”, he added.
“The Mayor presented to say, well, look, we can have the cenotaph area (in Linden) upgraded…so again, we’d have to write a proposal with the pictures and so on, with the schematic drawings and what we’d want to see.”
The Regional Chairman further made a promise to meet various Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Committees to share the ideas which were discussed and to explore ways of creating linkages as he urged councillors to “come out of the box” and make use of the opportunities.
