– Internet-connected Police cars among plans for loan
Government on Friday signed with the People’s Republic of China a US $36 million concessional loan agreement that is expected to go towards technological advancement in Guyana.
The loan agreement, which will finance Guyana’s National Broadband Project, has to be repaid in 20 years, with a 5-year grace period. Among the areas the loan will go towards is improving the technological capacity of the Police Force through e services.
Public Telecommunications Minister Cathy Hughes described it as a game-changer for Guyana, with the project having an 18-month implementation period. Speaking on the e-security component of the project, Hughes spoke of plans to outfit Police cars with Internet connectivity.
“This project now allows us to go to all the Police stations. It means that one Police
The loan agreement signing at the Finance Ministry. From left, Public Telecommunication Minister Cathy Hughes, Finance Minister Winston Jordan; Chinese Ambassador to Guyana, Cui Jianchun, and an official from the Chinese Embassy in Guyana
station can automatically communicate with another, which facilitates not only voice communication, but also the transferral of documents. Imagine if an individual is stopped by the Police and he’s looking at the driver’s licence.
“As happens in any other part of the world, today you can punch in a driver’s licence number and by the time the Police are asking the second or third question, he has on his tablet a total report on that individual, whether he has five tickets pending or whether he’s on the run for something else,” she explained.
According to the Minister, the project can dramatically reduce the time it takes the Police to respond to crime, real time. She noted that the Police can better coordinate responses to crime, as they can electronically track all mobile Police units and direct them to 911 callers in much the same way a taxi dispatcher coordinates drivers from a base.
“It means that if, for example, a crime is taking place; God forbid, but let’s say a bank robbery is taking place at a particular location, this project allows us to build a command centre, and with that centre, we’re going to have a team of individuals monitoring the Police mobile patrols in different locations,” she explained.
“So (if) an incident takes place in this location, in split seconds they’re going to be able to identify and also communicate with a Police rank on a motor bike or in a car, whoever is closest in that area. So, in response time, you’ll see the difference it will make. This project is a game-changer,” she enthused.
Other components
A new data centre will be one of the first things Government uses the money for. In addition, a public-private partnership will be sought to lay a subterranian fibre-optic cable. Other components of the project include e-medical services and Internet connected education.
She cautioned, however, that the sheer number of high schools means that the project can only be rolled out in designated regional schools. Hughes also assured that training of the Police and public servants will be a component under the project.
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Winston Jordan explained that the interest Government has to repay on the loan is 2 per cent. Jordan noted that such concessionary loan terms are not easy to come by, and attributed this to China’s kind gesture.
This loan follows a number of other agreements signed with the Chinese. In January of last year, Guyana had received a US$45.3 million concessional loan from the China Eximbank to complete the East Coast Road Expansion project.
Then there is the Belt and Road Initiative, or the Silk Road Economic Belt. The project aims to connect the disparate regions in China’s near and distant neighbourhood through a massive programme of infrastructure building.
Guyana became part of the initiative when Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge and Chinese Ambassador to Guyana, Cui Jianchun, signed a Memorandum of Understanding in July of this year.
