Social Protection Minister Amna Ally has stated that land has been acquired for the construction of a new Drop-in Centre at Sophia. The Minister explained that since her assumption to office, she has been working to move ahead with the construction of the new Drop-in Centre to properly cater for vulnerable children,
Minister of Social Protection, Amna Ally
the Government Information Agency (GINA) said in a release.
“Since I’ve come to this Ministry I have been able to secure a piece of land where we are going to build the Drop-in Centre. We are currently awaiting the paper work to be done so that we can go ahead with the construction,” Minister Ally explained.
She added that the current building was proven inadequate to house vulnerable children. It lacked the required facilities and space.
Ally said once completed, the new building will accommodate children and three families, and will have all the necessary facilities and safety features.
In July 2016, the Drop-in Centre at Hadfield Street, Georgetown was destroyed by a fire which claimed the lives of two brothers; six-year-old Joshua George and two-year-old Antonio George.
The preliminary report on the fire found that the centre had systematic problems and bad policy arrangements for handling fires.
Meanwhile, plans are also moving apace for the construction of a shelter for victims of Domestic and Sexual abuse. The shelter will be constructed in the compound of the Mahaica Hospital.
Minister Ally explained that the design has been completed and the ministry is currently awaiting approval from the Islamic Development Bank for the project to commence.
Ally said the shelter will be able to accommodate 20 families, or about 100 persons; mainly survivors of domestic violence. “At the end of the day, when you’re finished doing all the different things what next? What do you do with the survivors? There must be a place to shelter them and that is what we’re working towards,” Minister Ally underlined.
The Minister said her Ministry is also working on several rolled over projects, including the rehabilitation on the Palms and the Ministry’s Cornhill Street location, among others.
Additionally, the Ministry is constructing sidewalks at the offices of probation officers in Regions Five (Mahaica-Berbice) and Six (Upper Berbice-Corentyne), so as to allow easier access to their offices.
From the $16.6 billion allocated for the Social Protection Ministry in the 2017 National Budget, $20 million will be used for preliminary works on the Sophia Drop-in Centre and $4 million for the construction of the domestic violence centre.
