A small project but a giant opening

Sep 12, 2009 Editorial

The Ogle airstrip project is one of the shining beacons in Guyana’s development. It not only brings the city closer to visitors to Guyana from the other Caricom countries, it also opens the door to many developmental activities.
CARICOM Secretary-General, Edwin Carrington, noted the juxtaposition to the airport of crucial institutions – the University of Guyana, the CARICOM Secretariat, and the International Conference Centre.
Immediately, those who had the foresight to build there can smile because the value of their properties has increased manifold. But that is only one benefit. Mr Carrington highlighted many others and it is important to list them here.
He pointed to the improved intra-CARICOM air travel and transportation between Ogle Airport and Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados. “These points will serve as transit points for flights to and from other CARICOM Member States and beyond,” he said.
The airport is also expected to facilitate air travel and transportation between CARICOM Member States and the countries of Latin America, particularly Brazil, Venezuela and French Guiana through the use of Ogle Airport as a transit point.
But according to him it is the tourism sector that would get the most significant boost. Indeed Guyana has long been talking about tourism, and it is not for the want of trying that the tourism sector is still to take off. Suddenly, one can see people from the region taking a flight to Ogle en route to the tourism destinations in the hinterland before returning home at the end of a day.
Not only will the nation’s financial coffers be boosted but the country’s image would change dramatically. This would happen because of the foresight of a few. Guyana is not without people who have foresight, but many simply worry about their investment, since they all feel that they must get the go-ahead from the government. It is as though the people feel that they must still be led, and such a feeling does not do a country any good.
The city would really be expanded, something that was thought of and attempted some three decades ago. Some investor is going to establish a hotel and others would put their money into the erection of shopping malls to cater to the tourist crowd that would be a reality because of the new Ogle Airport.
When the government decided on the establishment of the new Providence stadium in the run-up to Cricket World Cup, there were the naysayers. They did not see the expansion of the city leading to positive development. Today, in the twinkling of an eye, that area is developing at an alarming rate. People are leaving the confines of old Georgetown to go there for their relaxation. Development is about initiative.
Indeed Guyana has people with money, and for reasons best known to themselves, they deposit their money in foreign banks where it does nothing for the country. This Ogle project could see some of that money being ploughed into the country.
There are going to more benefits coming from the regional level. More meetings would be held at the Secretariat, since leaders would land a stone’s throw away and access the institution.
There is a saying that time is money. Travel time would be drastically slashed thus Guyana would become even more accessible.
The government has already introduced immigration legislation that opens up the country. This is a case of the laws and development moving in tandem, and one is left to wonder why this could not have been done decades ago. Some would say money, but we feel that there was not enough initiative.
The airstrip is still too small to render the Cheddi Jagan International Airport redundant, but its potential cannot be overestimated. Mr Carrington said that appreciation must be expressed to the European Union and the Government of South Korea. Indeed Guyana has long been the beneficiary of international assistance.
Sometimes the people could not really appreciate the assistance. Today they can place their fingers on a few, the stadium and the airport being just two.
Guyana was once a showpiece. It seems to heading back to the glory days which cannot come fast enough. For too long there has been gloom and doom.

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