Minister of Housing and Water, the Hon. Collin Croal told residents of Corentyne, Berbice, that while the region has seen a significant transformation over the past three years, it’s nowhere close to the peak of what is to come.

These sentiments were shared as the Minister wrapped up a series of three meetings earlier this evening along the Corentyne.
Meetings were held at No. 28 Bushlot/ Farm, Wellington Park and Eversham.

Regional Chairman, David Armogan, Regional Vice Chairman, Zamal Hussain, Regional Executive Officer, Narindra Persaud, along with several other regional officials and technical staff of other government agencies, were also present at each meeting.

The meetings were geared toward sharing the government’s development agenda, coming out of Budget 2024, while garnering feedback that will shape Budget 2025.

“We have a responsibility to implement projects for which provisions have been made, and we also have a responsibility to hear from you what your needs are.”

Minister Croal spoke of the billions in investment made to date in the region across all sectors. He noted that the government remains committed to transforming the healthcare sector with the construction of new state-of-the-art medical facilities and the upgrading of existing ones. Additionally, the education sector continues to benefit from similar investments.

Speaking to his sectors, Minister Croal told residents that lands are being sought after for new housing development. While the Ministry has already allocated some 1300 land allocations in the region, there is still a large demand.

He pointed out that the region has 5,900 pending applications, and as such, the Ministry is working with other agencies to break the backlog.
In the water sector, the Minister assured residents that the Ministry is actively working to ensure that every citizen receives treated water, as plans are onstream for several water treatment plants.

Meanwhile, the Minister and team also opened the floor for questions and for persons to share their concerns.
A register of the issues raised was combined and will be submitted to the relevant sector heads for follow-up.