Rebuilding of Umana Yana underway

Dec 06, 2015 News

The Ministry of Public Infrastructure has commenced work to rebuild the historical Umana Yana, which was destroyed by fire in 2014.
The foundation and the flooring are currently being done at the original site in Kingston.

Work ongoing to create the foundation of the Umana Yana

The works, according to Government yesterday, started on November 18 and are expected to be completed before December 31. The value of the foundation work is $7.135 million.
Project Engineer, Khiraj Bisesar, explained that the project is being done in phases. He said that the Ministry will also be installing solar powered systems, fire prevention systems, including water sprinklers and fire extinguishers and cooling systems.
Following the works, the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs will take over the project.
The foundation will also be raised to alleviate possible flooding. It is expected that the new benab will be built using traditional methods by members of the Wai Wai tribe led by former Toshao, Colin Andrews. The materials will be supplied by the Villages of Masakenari and Moraikobai.
In the preliminary budget, a total of $66.680M was allocated for the project. However, the final cost for the project will be determined, based upon the materials supplied and the cost to bring these from the interior.
The Umana Yana was a conical palm thatched hut (benab), erected for the Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers Conference in Georgetown, Guyana, in August 1972, as a V.I.P. Lounge and recreation centre. It was a permanent and much admired part of Georgetown’s scenery, and was in constant use as an exhibition and conference centre.
The 55-foot high structure was made from thatched allibanna and manicole palm leaves, and wallaba posts, lashed together with mukru, turu and nibbi vines. It was erected by a team of about 60 Wai-Wais.
The original structure was put up in 80 days, but was destroyed by fire in just 15 minutes, on September 9, 2014.