Gov’t, UNICEF partner on ‘Safe School Project’ for children of Venezuelan migrants

May 14, 2019 News

The Government of Guyana and the United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Guyana have partnered on a ‘Safe School Proje

Ian Jones, UNICEF Guyana’s Emergency Specialist

ct’ for the children of Venezuelan migrants, who are living in the Barima- Waini Region (Region One) and other regions.
This was announced by Mr. Ian Jones, UNICEF Guyana’s Emergency Specialist, at yesterday’s Multi-Stakeholder Committee Meeting at the Department of Citizenship, which is tasked with the monitoring of the migrant situation in Guyana.
As part of the project, UNICEF Guyana is partnering with the University of Guyana (UG)’s Engineering students to expand the learning spaces in the regions using local materials during the July/August school break.
The Region One villages of Kamwatta, Imbotero, Port Kaituma and Mabaruma will benefit from this initiative, while Whitewater, Mabaruma and Wauna (also in Region One) will receive learning materials and aids.
Moreover, in partnership with the Ministry of Education, UNICEF Guyana will continue its Early Childhood Development engagements in Yarakita, Imbotero and Khan’s Hill.
Meanwhile, the Department of Citizenship is in the process of finalising a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) developed by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) for the implementation of Population Registration Identity Management Eco System (PRIMES).
Minister of Citizenship, Winston Felix explained that the PRIMES will see migrants being registered using information and communication technology. The migrants will be issued with a card, which will be used as an indicator that they were processed and are legal in the country.
“So we are going to have laptops stationed in Regions One, Seven and other areas that are deemed necessary to capture information on the arriving persons. These systems would be supported by a mobile printer, which will facilitate the printing of an identity card to say that they were registered and are legal. I would like to make it clear that this is not a National Identification card and cannot be used for citizenship purposes. It is simply to identify them and for them to access social services,” he told the Department of Public Information.

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News